England has become more divided since the vote to leave the European Union, new research has revealed.
The data commissioned by the anti-racism charity HOPE not Hate shows the gap between those in favour of immigration and those opposed has widened since the referendum result.
However the figures also show a trend towards England being more tolerant and welcoming since Brexit. The research suggests that despite a rise in the number of racist incidents immediately after the referendum results, attitudes towards immigrant communities has improved. "While the Referendum result gave encouragement to people who already 'hate' to hate even more, the general attitudes of the English towards immigration, a multicultural society and Muslims, have got slightly more positive," said the report.
The proportion of people comfortable with immigration and multiculturalism has increased from 32 per cent to 38 per cent, when compared to a similar poll before the referendum. Meanwhile 20 per cent are strongly opposed to immigration, down from 24 per cent before the vote on June 23.
But the report warned that those most opposed to immigration, who are now most optimistic about the UK's future out of the EU, may feel let down as the reality of Brexit emerges. "The danger is that sooner or later this optimism will burst and when that happens these voters will be even angrier than they were before – and possibly look for more hardline solutions," the report read.
The figures come as ministers and MPs gathered for a community cohesion summit in Parliament on Tuesday. The culture secretary Karen Bradley and former co-chair of the Conservative Party Baroness Warsi spoke on how to tackle a spike in hate crimes and racial tensions since the referendum.
Summit chair Jack Dromey MP said Britain was "scarred by rising racism" since Brexit which was "wrong and quite simply not British". The Bishop of Croyden, the Rt Rev Jonathan Clark and chair of the Churches' Refugee Network and Gillian Merron, MP for Lincoln and vice-president of the Jewish Leadership Council, were among a number of faith leaders and MPs to attend.
HOPE not hate has organised a #MoreInCommon campaign to fight rising tensions including a weekend to promote peace across racial boundaries.
Nick Lowles, chief executive of the charity, said: "Time and again it has been proved that the more we interact the easier it is to breakdown barriers and find common ground. There are many real and serious problems in our local communities and life for many is very tough. However, we can better solve our problems through talking and working together. Our #MoreInCommon weekend is the start of this process."
