TJC 2018 Prelims GP (P2 Insert)

TEMASEK JUNIOR COLLEGE PRELIMINARY EXAMINATION 2018 GENERAL PAPER 8807/02 Paper 2 23 August 2018 INSERT 1 hour 30 minutes READ THESE INSTRUCTIONS FIRST This Insert contains the passages for Paper 2. This document consists of 3 printed pages and 1 blank page. [Turn over

2 Passage 1. Tommy Stadlen argues for the benefits of immigration 1 There is a moment in Charles Dickens’s travelogue, ‘American Notes’, when the author comes to realise the greatness of immigrants. “It would be hard to keep your model republics going, without the countrymen and countrywomen of those two labourers,” he reflects, watching a pair of Irish immigrants. Modern Britain does not lack for such insight. The evidence in favour of immigration is too compelling for political elites to misunderstand. Our problem is that today’s Dickenses are drowned out by xenophobic chants that say voters dislike immigrants. 5 2 Recently, a political consensus has emerged around the notion that immigration is out of control and detrimental to Britons’ economic well-being. Politicians are falling over each other to proffer unedifying soundbites such as “England belongs to the English”. Few are willing to say what they all know to be true: that immigration is not only beneficial but absolutely necessary for Britain to thrive. 10 3 Research at University College London found that eastern European migrants pay far more taxes than they receive in benefits and services. The net benefit of almost 40 per cent that they contribute contrasts heavily with British born citizens who pay in taxes 20 per cent less than they receive in public services and benefits. A similar story of foreigners subsidising Britons is apparent in universities. With their inflated fees, visitors and would-be citizens prop up an education system neither the government nor students appear willing to fund. In their disproportionate entrepreneurialism, immigrants are vital engines of innovation and growth. Countries with more start-ups grow faster, and immigrants are more likely to be self-employed than natives. This is particularly true in mainland Europe but also in the UK and the US, where foreign-born pioneers are responsible for Google, Yahoo! and eBay. Over half of Silicon Valley companies were founded by immigrants. 15 20 4 Michael Bloomberg, mayor of New York City , has warned against “national suicide” as America pushes for greater border controls and emerging economies offer incentives to tempt home highly skilled workers. “We ship them home, where they can take what they learned here and use it to create companies and products that compete with ours.” We need more voices like Bloomberg in Britain. Politicians must acknowledge that immigrants represent an important part of the solution to our demographic time bomb. The proportion of western Europe’s population aged 65 or older will almost double by 2050, according to UN projections. Increased immigration can mitigate an ageing population and ease the state burden. Success here is dependent on government action. 25 30 5 In the face of such strong economic arguments for immigration, some oppose it on social grounds. They claim endless new arrivals corrode British identity. But has that ship not sailed? The Britain of cucumber sandwiches and village cricket remains part of this country’s identity, but only one part. Each of the main immigrant groups is woven into Britain’s fabric. The Indian community alone has provided the UK’s richest man, an England cricket captain and a new national cuisine. In their leadership of organisations like Liberty and New Look, people of Indian descent have shaped both our values and our spending habits. 35 40 6 No one doubts that immigration poses challenges for communities. Of course, integration is critical to social cohesion. But these are challenges we can and must meet. It is not good enough for David Cameron to criticise immigrants’ failure to integrate while his government slashes funding for their English lessons. Welcome immigrants warmly and most will respond in the spirit of our most famous literary import, T.S. Eliot – “Remember I am… a foreigner, and that I want to understand you, and all the background and tradition of you.” Politicians need not appeal to our better selves to support immigration – our self-interest will do. 45 50

3 Passage 2. David Goodhart raises several arguments against immigration 1 The Brexit vote was evidently not just about immigrants. It is the seething discontent of a large slice of the public created by twenty years of historically unprecedented immigration and the nonchalant response of the political class to this change – one that never appeared in an election manifesto and was never chosen by anyone. 2 Around 75 per cent of the population (including more than half of ethnic minority citizens) has consistently lamented that immigration is too high. Immigration is also a metaphor for the larger disruptions of social and economic change, especially for those who have done least well out of them. In the quiet of their living rooms, most people have quite nuanced views on different forms of immigration and tend to be more positive about the local story. Yet, immigration overall still stands for “change as loss.” 5 10 3 It is a basic human instinct to be wary of strangers and outsiders. In rich, individualistic societies, tribal and ethnic instincts may have abated but they have not disappeared completely and have been supplemented by anxiety about sharing economic space and public services with outsiders. Many still do not like the macro changes to their city or country and worry that too many newcomers fail to integrate. Although chauvinistic nationalism is much rarer in modern Britain than it was a couple of generations ago, the belief that citizens should be first in the queue remains as strong as ever. State welfare has extended its reach via tax credits and housing benefit and although state employment overall has been in decline, if you live in some of the most run-down parts of Britain, you will probably be employed by the state. This does not necessarily make you a flag-waving nationalist but it might make you more sensitive to competition with outsiders for school places, hospital beds or social housing. 15 20 4 In areas of high immigration, people doing blue-collar jobs can come to feel even more like a replaceable cog in the economic machine as they are exposed to greater competition of various kinds with outsiders. Instead of the “one nation” they are beseeched to sign up for they will often see a political class casting aside the common- sense principle of fellow-citizen favouritism. Areas of low immigration are often depressed former industrial areas or seaside towns where people feel that the national story has passed them by, as it has. Opposition to immigration in these areas is more about the changing priorities of the country and its governing class, priorities that no longer seem to include them. 25 30 5 Anxieties about integration exacerbate opposition to immigration, and with some reason. There is a growing separation in neighbourhoods and schools in some areas between the white British majority and some minority groups. In recent years, a second integration problem has been added: people from the poorer countries who have no desire to integrate into British society because they are here for a short period to earn money. 35 6 A guest citizen is not a full member, does not have full access to social and political rights and leaves after a few years. Formalis ing guest citizenship would mean that we could concentrate rights, benefits and integration efforts on those who are making a commitment to this country. There is a trade-off between migration and citiz