Horizon scanning @ Renaissance Philanthropy. Formerly research fellow @ Open Phil. Mostly on Twitter.
Lauren Gilbert
Karma: 839
Immigration and Innovation
2025-2026 Within-Country Migration Job Market Papers
Return Migration
Two (Meta)science Conferences I Think Should Exist
What happens when you send Ugandan students to Germany?
Are recent immigrants a “ticking time bomb” for British public finances?
It seems this pathway no longer exists?
I would say “having roughly similar migration as several other rich countries” does mean not “open borders”, as I think few people would claim that open borders is currently the state of entrance into most rich countries. (Certainly, as an immigrant in the UK, it has not been my experience.)
In answer to those points:
About one in four UK tourist visas is refused, which does not seem that easy. The UK has a relatively small number of migrants that arrive by sea, compared to other European countries with a long coastline. About half of asylum applications are denied. Most denied asylum seekers then leave the country.
So I stand by “open borders seems like quite the exaggeration”.
Update: I have edited, and added a footnote saying you corrected me, linking to this comment, and noting that I offered you a bug bounty.
You’re correct that I accidentally used the 2023 work visa total instead of 2024 work visa total.
I’ll edit. As per my bug bounty policy, I’ll also donate $10 to a charity of your choice: https://www.laurenpolicy.com/p/announcing-a-bug-bounty-for-this
That being said, I am relatively unconcerned about the fiscal effects of this given 1) dependents are allowed to work in the UK (unlike in the US), 2) cohort wages look decent through 2023, and 3) labor force participation for non-UK born remains higher than for the UK born (through 2025).
UK Immigration and Public Services
Undocumented People In The United States
So was I, tbh! It is also possible that there are more studies but they are in French and I cannot read them.
Immigration and Crime in Europe
Responded on Substack!
Agree on housing, disagree on NHS: https://www.laurenpolicy.com/p/uk-immigration-and-public-services