Sharp spike in Britons' anti-immigrant feelings: Research

Hostility to the current scale of immigration is increasing among Britons, a new research has revealed.

New findings from the British Social Attitudes survey revealed that 77 percent of people supported a reduction in immigration levels.

The 77 percent included 56 percent who wanted it cut by 'a lot', the highest number on record, and another 21 per cent who wanted it reduced a little.

According to the Independent, the research found that despite claims that influxes of newcomers will depress wages and increase unemployment, the proportion who believed immigration was bad for the economy had dropped from 52 percent in 2011 to 47 percent last year.

Nearly 31 percent now said that migration had boosted the economy.

Nearly 34 percent said they believed immigration enriched Britain's cultural life, compared with 45 percent who took the opposite view, the report added.