Myth of 'return' and 'expulsion'?

The myth of return among some immigrant communities, particularly Mirpuris, is now on the wane, as reality dawns that we are here to stay. This even as Mirpuris pour huge amounts of wealth into Mirpur, especially for constructing large residences with the Grecian pillars. Another, more ominous belief, discussed sotto voce by elders who arrived in the 40s and 50s and which has fluctuated over the years but was revived after 7/7, is that at some point we will be expelled.

It's a nasty thought that first took root after Enoch Powell's 'rivers of blood' speech and was commonly held in the days of National Front marches during the 1970s. It subsided somewhat during the 1980s, but has seen a resurgence recently in the days of 7/7, an upturn in BNP fortunes and the new wave of immigration during the late 90s and the first few years of this century.

So what is my own take on this view? Is it totally unreasonable? At one level it is; the culture of human rights is so deep in western Europe that it would be impossible to expel people. But that misses another point. If there is ever expulsion, it would be preceded by serious deterioration in the social and economic health of the country. Rising unemployment, precipitated by the drainage of jobs to low wage economies, could provide the spark for such instability. We are nowhere near that stage at the moment.

There have been reports that the BNP is ready to exploit the next recession as part of its electoral strategy. My fear is that it may also be helped by the current trend, whereby we are becoming an unequal economy, with a large number of people working in low-wage mc-jobs and a minority of super-rich people. Those in the middle are the most vulnerable to the drainage of jobs to low wage economies. Again, we are nowhere near reaching this point, but in the long term, this could provide a new pool of support for the likes of the BNP.