Why do Natives and non-Natives in the United Kingdom have different Spatial Patterns?

Abstract

The United Kingdom, like other OECD countries, has attracted a high number of immigrants from around the world in the last half-century. The liberalisation of immigration for commonwealth citizens between 1948 and 1972 and subsequent accession to the European Economic Community afterward set the stage for the heterogeneity of the UK population. Housing is an intrinsic element of an immigrant’s voyage and is typically linked with local and regional spatial patterns. Thus, the UK regional and local spatial dynamics may also be linked to the dynamic forces of immigration waves to the UK in the last half-century. Anecdotal evidence suggests that immigrants in the UK prefer to settle in the South-east of England compared to other regions of the UK. London particularly houses approximately 2.8 million immigrants, which is over 40% of the total immigrant stock, thus, immigrant and ethnic clusters are entrenched and expanding. Literature reveals that factors such as regional economics, regional housing markets, regional labour markets, and urban dynamics are key determinants of regional and metropolitan spatial patterns. Furthermore, individual taste and preferences, socio-economic factors, demographic factors, and socio-cultural factors also play major roles in defining local and neighbourhood patterns. This paper aims to empirically analyse other factors which may be influencing regional and local spatial patterns of natives and non-natives beyond the conventional factors accounted for in literature, and on a multi-generational scale. Using the UK Longitudinal Survey data which captures the demographic, socio-economic, socio-cultural and spatial patterns of natives and non-natives, we model the spatial patterns of UK natives and multiple generations of non-natives. Our core interest is to find out particularly why South-east England and the Greater London areas receive a higher proportion of migrants compared to other parts of the UK despite the affordability challenges in these areas. Furthermore, we analyse the effects of immigrant clusters on the spatial patterns of natives. By analysing the regional and local patterns of immigrants, we can improve insight on the social and economic integration of first and second-generation immigrants. Furthermore, we are able to identify the unique patterns of second-generation immigrants and compare these to natives and to first-generation immigrants in a unique way that has previously not been applied to spatial modelling. Additionally, by mapping the spatial patterns of natives and multiple generations of non-natives, we can link these patterns to housing demand, rents and house prices at regional, metropolitan, local and neighbourhood levels. More fundamentally, the impact of immigrants on the local economy is a highly debatable topic globally, hence the findings will improve insight for policymakers, urban planners, housing economists, and political economists.