ABSTRACT
This chapter reflects the range of views and social constructions as widely and accurately as possible whilst recognising the emotive and frequently extreme polarisation which makes an even-handed approach itself problematic. It looks at the way in which migration has been defined and the competing social constructions at play, drawing on recent history and policy responses, with special reference to a range of commentators and contemporary examples. The chapter argues that at the heart of debates on migration there are always the centrifugal and centripetal forces of exclusion and integration. The clarification of free movement and harmonisation of labour markets was followed by a focusing of attention on social concerns, such as the Maastricht Treaty(1992) and in particular the Social Chapter. Migration is often perceived to threaten established social norms, to destabilise or undermine the homeland, its traditions and institutions. Real and imagined threats are constructed around issues of crime, terrorism, disease, welfare, jobs and an existential loss of identity.
