Immigration issue could be key to German election

Poll results strengthen hand of rightwing candidate for chancellor.

A large number of Germans are opposed to letting more foreigners into the country, according to a new survey which underpins the worry that the attitudes of the anti-immigrant far right are gaining a foothold in the heart of Europe.

In a poll published in yesterday's economic daily Handelsblatt, 46% of Germans said they were against allowing in more immigrants, and 36% - 41% in the east - thought there were too many immigrants in the country already.

In a second survey most of those asked said the majority of Germany's existing immigrants were not interested in integrating.

Immigration is likely to be a central issue in the national elections in the autumn, one which analysts say politicians will ignore at their peril.

The results of the polls, two weeks after the success of the far right in French presidential election, play into the hands of Edmund Stoiber, the conservatives' rightwing candidate for chancellor against the Social Democrat leader Gerhard Schröder in September.

Mr Stoiber has spoken out against Germany opening its doors to more immigrants.

The first poll, carried out by the Forsa Institute, indicated that Germans have more confidence in the conservative bloc, made up of the Christian Democrats and Christian Socialists, regulating immigration than any other single political group.

Only 12% said they were in favour of accepting more foreigners.

Germany faces a messy conundrum, since industry chiefs warn that the country needs an influx of highly skilled immigrants in the next few years if it is to overcome the labour shortage caused by the low birth rate and ageing population.

A month ago parliament passed controversial legislation opening Germany up to immigrant workers for the first time since the 1970s. The law allows a controlled flow of skilled workers into the country.

But Mr Schröder faces an uphill task between now and September convincing voters in a country where unemployment stands at 10% that it needs more immigrants.

In the second Handelsblatt survey, carried out by the Allenbach Institute for Public Opinion Research, 54% of those asked said they felt that the majority of the country's foreigners - who account for almost 10% of the population - were not interested in assimilating.

More than half of the 2,000 questioned said they associated foreigners with drug smuggling, and 43% said foreigners were inclined to be more violent than Germans.

The new immigration policy includes providing immigrants with access to German language learning and lessons on culture and society, which will be compulsory for long-standing residents.

In a concession to the right, the already strict asylum laws were tightened and attempts at integration were made a necessary condition for residency.

Under past conservative governments, and until Mr Schröder's Social Democrats came to power in a coalition with the Greens in 1998, the line between visitors and migrants was blurred, mainstream politicians repeating again and again the phrase that Germany was "not a country of immigration", despite the millions of foreigners who had already made their homes there.

For years they were considered "guest workers" who would one day go home.