The Politics of Restriction

Abstract

This chapter analyzes the relationship between the rise of xenophobic parties and changes in immigration and asylum policy.¹ Although one reason for the concern about xenophobic parties has been their potential influence on immigration policy, there is not a substantial body of literature that either theorizes on or empirically addresses the question of these parties’ effects on legislation. There is one unambiguous case in which the electoral breakthrough of a xenophobic party had a profound and sustained effect on the political agenda regarding immigration policy. In France, where the Front National (National Front) broke through at the moment when the issue of how to integrate immigrants was novel and pressing, the party maintained a consistent focus on the issue, and mainstream parties were forced to develop policy responses to stop the Front National’s (FN) growing influence (Schain 1988, 1996, Shields 1997). Whether the FN can serve as a model for other countries is problematic, both because xenophobic parties have not been as integral to the politicization of the issue as in France, and because these parties have been less consistent in their focus on the issue than in France.