Poles To Newcastle

Abstract

Identifying a missing local and regional scale in most analyses of UK migration, this article maps the geography of post-accession migrants from Central Europe (A8 migrants) and highlights the need to analyse the phenomenon of migration to localities and regions with little history of immigration and with underperforming labour markets. It draws on the particular example of the North East of England to ask how migrant workers are grounded in local labour markets, and uses this case-study to examine the interrelations between migration and labour markets. The article explores the role of different institutions — public and private — at different scales in mediating and regulating the labour market participation of migrant workers, and reviews the processes of A8 labour migration in the context of debates over regional labour markets and skills. In short, the article reflects in both conceptual and policy terms on the place of migrant workers in peripheral regions, and connects the analysis to debates over the potential contribution of migration to regional labour markets and economies, as policymakers increasingly look to migration for rejuvenation of skills and employment.