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Boris Johnson's Flip-Flopping Immigration Journey In 11 Steps

Boris's Flip-Flopping Immigration Journey In 11 Steps
Asa Bennett
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WASHINGTON, DC - NOVEMBER 15: London Mayor, Boris Johnson, promotes his new book, The Churchill Factor at Politics and Prose bookstore on Saturday November 15, 2014. He signs books after his reading. (Photo by Sarah L. Voisin/The Washington Post via Getty Images)
The Washington Post via Getty Images

Boris Johnson is no stranger to controversy, and immigration is among the most controversial debates in UK politics.

The London Mayor, and Tory candidate for Uxbridge, has over the years said a lot about immigrants and multiculturalism. However, he has swung from being hardline about migrants, to more friendly, and back like a pendulum.

Johnson started out telling migrants to learn English, went on to back an amnesty for illegal migrants, and now - with Ukip gaining popularity - is back telling everyone to learn English again.

HuffPost UK charts Johnson's daring journey from migration hardliner, to friend and back again, in 11 steps.

Boris Johnson's Immigration Evolution
4 August 2005: BoJo has a dream of you learning English(01 of11)
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In a column for the Daily Telegraph, the then Tory MP waxed lyrical about his "British dream" and how "we must all speak the same language" in order to stop "this multicultural apartheid". "We do indeed need to inculcate this Britishness, especially into young Muslims," he went on to say, calling for imams to be banned from preaching sermons in "anything but English".
21 April 2008: BoJo backs a migrant amnesty(02 of11)
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Then Tory London mayoral candidate Johnson estimated that there were hundreds of thousands of illegal immigrants in Britain, and they needed to be "regularised", in a call that was later slapped down by David Cameron.
9 March 2009: BoJo is still going on about the amnesty(03 of11)
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Now London Mayor, Johnson stuck to his guns on this occasion as he argued that an amnesty was worth considering.
12 Sep 2010: BoJo doesn't like the migration cap(04 of11)
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Johnson was so concerned about a cap on non-EU migration that he wrote to home secretary Theresa May to see if rules can be eased for some workers.
22 April 2012: Boris tells Dave to get tough(05 of11)
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Johnson, then standing for re-election as London Mayor, temporarily ditched his beloved amnesty in favour of telling ministers to get a "much tighter grip" on immigration, insisting that it "can't be beyond the wit of man" to sort the problem out.
2 June 2013: BoJo thought it was 'crazy' not to have an amnesty(06 of11)
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In his second term as London Mayor, Johnson repeated his support for giving amnesty to illegal immigrants, despite David Cameron dismissing the idea as "terrible" just days before.
25 October 2013: BoJo gets proud to be pro-migration (07 of11)
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The London Mayor said that he was “probably about the only politician I know of who is actually willing to stand up and say that he’s pro-immigration.”
5 June 2014: BoJo says London needs migrants(08 of11)
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In apocalyptic tones, Johnson warned that London would fall like the Greek city of Sparta if it turns away immigrants like the ancient militaristic regime which "kicked people out". (credit:Suhaimi Abdullah via Getty Images)
04 Dec 2014: BoJo claims everyone has a fear of migrants(09 of11)
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Speaking to the Evening Standard, Johnson seemed rather sympathetic to xenophobes, arguing that it is "part of human nature" to feel that way, and it "doesn't make you a bad person". (credit:ASSOCIATED PRESS)
8 December 2014: BoJo thought xenophobia was like 'sewage'(10 of11)
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Just days after saying a fear of foreigners didn't make you a bad person, Johnson rounded on xenophobia, saying it was like "sewage...like effluent, it’s something that human beings naturally produce."
05 Jan 2015: BoJo wants you to learn English again(11 of11)
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Throwing his weight behind Nigel Farage, Johnson said that "everybody who comes to work in our economy should be able to speak English."

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