As anti-migration policies sweep the continent, the Spanish PM is going against the tide by announcing plans to legalise the status of undocumented migrants
Don’t get This Is Europe delivered to your inbox? Sign up here
You don’t need a degree in political science to understand why so many supposedly centrist European leaders have begun talking about immigration in terms that would have been unthinkable even a few years ago.
Far-right parties across the continent have fuelled their rise by seizing on the issue as a political cosh with which to beat their more mainstream and established rivals, whom they accuse of complacency, inaction and a failure to defend borders.
Unsure of how best to respond, many parties have adopted the far-right’s language in the hope that all the tough talk will persuade voters they’re also taking immigration seriously.
