"One of the problems underlying all this is not immigration per-se, but the rapid and unbounded expansion of the EU to include countries with a huge range of in

"One of the problems underlying all this is not immigration per-se, but the rapid and unbounded expansion of the EU to include countries with a huge range of incomes and costs-of-life." The theory is that by including these countries in the Union their conditions eventually will improve (through EU funding and access to the single market) to a point that people won't have any reason to emigrate, basically removing the root cause of immigration. It makes a lot of sense, but it is in the best of case a long and difficult process, and people facing loss of jobs and diminishing wealth will see solutions like "let's build a wall", or "let's get out of the EU" as appealing, it's human nature. Maybe instead of going "all in, all the way" with the single market and free movement (that personally I have thoroughly enjoyed and consider it a huge net positive), the EU should have made the process more gradual.