Parts of England saw widespread rioting by right-wing extremists for over a week in July. The rioters attacked places of worship, smashed shops and clashed with the police at many places.

The disturbances started after rumours circulated on social media suggesting that the attacker implicated in an earlier stabbing incident at Liverpool was a refugee and Muslim. These rumours were amplified by influencers with millions of followers. Even after the UK police disclosed the identity of the attacker, the disturbances continued, and it took them a whole week and a series of counter-protests by anti-racism activists to put an end to the rioting.

White supremacists led by Tommy Robinson were widely blamed for the rioting, but it also reflected the fact that far right ideas were gaining popularity in the UK. These ideas are gaining popularity not just in the UK but across Europe, and the parties representing their interests are able to increase their vote share. Far right parties and populist leaders have enjoyed recent success in France, Germany, the Netherlands, Italy and elsewhere. To understand this resurgence, we must turn to the past.

The unwelcome guest

A fundamental reason behind the far right's popularity in Europe is the growing unease towards migrants. Before World War II, few non-white people lived in England or France. The situation changed dramatically after the war, when waves of immigration, many from the former colonies, arrived in Europe.

Many of the immigrants worked in low-level factories and manufacturing jobs where there was an urgent shortage of workers, like in France and Germany. They were joined by family members and other groups, such as students who stayed back after school for work.

By 2000, many European countries had immigrant populations between 5 to 10 percent of their total population. Some groups had assimilated very well and were relatively well off, while others faced high levels of unemployment and suffered from social disadvantages.

Notably, every country strongly resented immigration, even if they committed to equal rights. The UK itself had a long history of racism and unwelcome attitudes towards Asian immigrants starting in the 1950s, leading to periodic rioting.

Far right mentality

Right-wing populist leaders claim that mass migration is destroying European countries, and it must be urgently stopped. They warn of a “Great Replacement” where non-white immigrants would outnumber native whites, leading to the destruction of national identity.

Immigrants are alleged to be living on government handouts and not contributing to the country. Entire areas inhabited by migrant communities are said to be dangerous ‘no-go’ areas for the natives. On social media, people complain that they can no longer recognise parts of their own countries, because they see few white people and see women in headscarves and shops catering to migrants.

While they are hostile to all non-white populations, the far right opposition to Muslim migrants stands out in particular. Every far right leader of repute in Europe is strongly hostile to Islam. Islam is said to be ‘incompatible’ with Western values. Muslims living in European countries are denounced as ‘backward’ and ‘violent’. Muslim immigrants are claimed to be ‘imposing’ sharia, halal food and so forth.

Economic decline

The sense of grievance over unchecked immigration and alleged Islamisation is aggravated by economic hardship. Wages and living standards for the working class have stagnated in many parts of the Western world. In the UK, real wages for the bottom 20 percent have not increased in more than 15 years, and a persistently high number of working-age people are out of the labour force. Even in prosperous Germany and France, a substantial population is just managing to stay afloat. It is much easier to appeal to prejudice and hatred in people doing badly or believing that the system is not working for them.

Part of the reason for the economic distress is that Europe today produces very few things of its own; many mining, metal and factory jobs have simply vanished in the UK and elsewhere. Not only blue-collar jobs but even skilled office work in IT, accounting, finance and law have been outsourced to offshore locations like India and eastern Europe.

The hollowing out of the working classes has been accompanied by pressure on the welfare state. Welfare benefits are heavily curtailed and made conditional on various considerations. The average European needs to work longer before gaining the right to a full pension but pensions themselves have not kept pace with the rise in living costs in many countries.

Hard choices

Despite widespread opposition to immigration, not just among the far-right fringe, Europe faces the dilemma of ageing and slowly losing population. The continent’s total fertility rate (TFR) was 1.4 against the 2.1 required to maintain the population. Countries like Germany, Spain, and Italy will likely face huge drops in population in the coming decades.

Unless European countries were ready to live with smaller populations, they would need skilled migrants. European universities and colleges will need international students to keep up enrollments, and sectors of the economy, such as healthcare, will seek foreign workers. How can Europe find a middle ground between the conflicting situations?

The way out

Meeting future population needs in Europe requires increased acceptance of immigration by the native populations. Above all, this implies tackling the problem of illegal migrants and refugees. Unlike overseas students and skilled workers who contribute to the host countries' economies, illegal migrants and asylum seekers are the most visible face of immigration, stoking far right sentiments. They are the ones who get put up in temporary camps and accommodation, receive government aid and squat on public property, fuelling public anger.

The EU already works with countries to intercept migrants (notably Turkey and Libya), but more needs to be done to prevent migrants from undertaking dangerous journeys across sea and land. Once they land in the country, swift action is required to send them back, except the most vulnerable. The outgoing conservative government in the UK had tried to find a way out by using Rwanda as a transit country for immigrants, but the plan did not come to fruition.

Along with stricter action on illegal immigration, Europe will also have to look at revitalising industry and creating jobs. Large companies could be offered incentives to keep jobs within the national boundaries. For instance, there could be a differential tax system where the companies keeping jobs within the country are offered tax breaks over those who heavily rely on imports or outsourcing. Many lost arts and crafts for which European towns and cities were once famous could be revived.

Ultimately, the extent to which countries like the UK can navigate the twin challenges of immigration reform and economic distress will determine whether they are able to confidently face the challenges of the next few decades. If their economies fail to work for the common people, and if far right groups continue to grow, then there is a real danger that many European nations will fall back on the chauvinistic, nationalistic tendencies of the early 20th century that brought untold suffering.