‘It’s Time This Country Got Serious’ Says Farage as Poll Reveals 71% Back Annual Migrant Cap

British voters across all party allegiances, views on Brexit, and age profiles think there should be an annual cap on the number of migrant arrivals to the country after a Brexit, a new poll has found, prompting Brexit leader Nigel Farage to reflect it was time for the nation to “get serious” on the challenge.

A majority of voters in the United Kingdom support what amounts to a radical re-think on immigration control, agreeing to changes to the present system that go well beyond anything on offer from the mainstream political parties. Some seven in ten — or 71 per cent — of those asked in new Deltapoll research said they supported controlling the number of migrant worker arrivals.

Perhaps most significantly, the results of the poll show overwhelming support for the policy over almost every demographic. Supporters of all the main political parties — including the enthusiastically pro-mass migration Liberal Democrats — back an annual immigration limit by over 60 per cent in favour.

Women were also more likely to back a migration cap than men, with 74 per cent agreeing.

Respondents to the question “The Australian immigration system includes a cap that controls the number of migrant workers allowed to come each year. Would you support or oppose an annual cap to control the total number of skilled workers allowed to come to the UK from overseas after Brexit?” also were not significantly divided by how they voted in the 2016 Brexit referendum. While 84 per cent of Brexit voters said yes, Remainers also backed it, with an outright majority of 64 per cent.

In fact, the only polled group who did not give the idea majority support were voters aged 18-35, but a plurality of even that group still supported a migration cap, backing it 46 to 26, with 28 per cent ‘don’t knows’.

Speaking to Breitbart London on the immigration figures — a matter of long term interest for the general public but an area studiously avoided in Westminster when possible — Nigel Farage said the results proved it was time “this country got serious on immigration”. But the Brexit leader questioned whether the Conservatives would actually reduce the numbers.

The Deltapoll research was carried out for the Migration Watch UK group which campaigns for immigration reform. Migration Watch Chairman Alp Mehmet said of the findings: “As usual, the sensible British public, in this case more than 30 million of them, are way ahead of the politicians.

“An Australian-style cap on work permits is vital. Voters are well aware of the dangers. Without any cap on work permits, the inflow would not just be uncontrolled but would be uncontrollable.”

The Conservative Party launched an Australian points-style immigration system on Monday, part of their general election campaign. While the Tory manifesto states under the new immigration system, arrivals who “a) Have a good grasp of English b) Have been law-abiding citizens in their own countries c) Have good education and qualifications” would be priorities, there is no mention of an annual migrant limit.

Indeed, while the Conservatives have persistently promised to drastically cut migration in previous manifestos, they have actually done the opposite and Boris Johnson has refused to commit to lowering immigration.

As reported by Breitbart London on Monday, the Australian system is significantly stricter than the proposed UK Conservative system. In addition to the points-based requirements for entry judged on professional experience, English proficiency, education level, and age, there is also a hard limit of 160,000 arrivals a year.

The Australian system also accounts for high levels of congestion in urban areas, banning new arrivals from moving to big cities like Sydney and Melbourne for three years so as not to place further stress on infrastructure.