ABSTRACT
Chapter 6 summarises the findings from the empirical research in the previous chapters with the objective of providing a response to the main research question of this book: namely, what has driven and continues to drive the Conservative Party’s immigration policy? The first section considers what can be understood from making use of the synthesis theoretical framework. The use of Gamble’s theory of the ‘politics of power’ versus the ‘politics of support’ as a lens through which to view the Tories’ immigration policy-making has been essential to the development of this research. On the whole, the leadership of the Party seems to be the single most significant influence on immigration policy-making. Factions are critical too in setting the direction or tone of policy, even if it is difficult at times to determine which of the factions is the dominant one. Electoral motivations play less of a role than one might expect: it is rare to see a shift in policy after a defeat at the ballot box, but there is a (sometimes subtle) influence. Next, it moves on to the ten substantive findings of the study in terms of its contributions to our understanding of immigration policy-making and considers the applicability of the findings for a wider research context. Finally, this chapter acknowledges the limitations of this work and puts forward suggestions for future work.
