Public perceptions on migration and integration policies in the small island states of the EU

Abstract

The main objective of this dissertation is to analyse if, and to what extent, the governments of the two small island states of the EU, Malta and Cyprus, are promoting the effective integration of migrants into society, and whether the governments of Malta and Cyprus are just using migrants for the benefit of their economies whilst ignoring integration needs. This dissertation also discusses public perceptions over migration and integration of both Malta and Cyprus, drawing comparative analyses between the public perceptions and the actions of both governments towards migration and integration. The key research questions being investigated are: (1) To what extent do the approaches towards migration undertaken by the Maltese and Cypriot governments conform to the Opportunistic Framework? (2) What measures are the governments of Malta and Cyprus implementing to promote integration? The dissertation adopts a qualitative research design, employing content analysis of the Maltese and Cypriot budgets for the period 2017 to 2020, and a document analysis of key integration documents approved by the two small island states of the EU, which together with available secondary data from the Eurobarometer, will help to gauge whether the two countries tend to adopt an opportunistic framework in the integration of migrants into their societies. Results show that both countries tend to make use of this opportunistic framework at different levels, prioritizing migrants’ contribution to the economy without offering sufficient integration measures in return. This dissertation intends to support research in the area growing area of migration studies, and potentially guide policy to improve the effectiveness of budget measures to support integration policies