Analyse reasons for the recent and widespread rise of anti-immigration movements.

Discuss ways in which global financial flows can be affected by the actions of governments.

Marks should be allocated according to the paper 3 part A markbands. These can be found under the “Your tests” tab > supplemental materials.

Anti-immigration movements take many forms in different countries and contexts. Recently, many different local movements have developed globally (eg, from Australia to South Africa). In Europe there is a loose international alliance of localist movements. Reasons differ from context to context and encompass economic (work), social (housing) and cultural (religious) issues, amongst many others.

Possible reasons for the recent and widespread rise of anti-immigration movements:

• Recent cultural and religious changes that are linked with increased cultural diversity.
• Economic issues, including the availability of work.
• Increasing numbers of people on the move for various physical, economic, demographic and political reasons.
• Widespread pressures on governments around the world in relation to the refugee crisis.
• Recent political concerns linked with terrorism and radicalization, and the actions of powerful governments/personalities that may fuel anti-immigration sentiments.
• The use of social media to promote anti-immigration messages.
• The recent tension between nationalism/localism and increased globalization.

Good answers may apply (AO2) a wider range of knowledge and understanding (AO1) in a well-structured way (AO4). One approach might be to provide a structured systematic analysis of the different possible reasons that explain the recent rise in migration and resistance to it, drawing on contemporary evidence. Another approach might be to analyse the widespread / global nature of these movements, and the common themes that help explain their existence (weaker responses will focus on case studies in an ‘episodic’ way and will neglect to address the ‘widespread’ spatial manifestation of the issues they describe).

For 4–6 marks, expect some weakly evidenced outlining of one or two reasons why anti-immigration movements exist.

For 7–9 marks, expect a structured, evidenced analysis of:

• either a range of reasons (two or more) why anti-immigration movements have arisen recently
• or reasons for the widespread occurrence of anti-immigration movements in many different contexts.

For 10–12 marks, expect both of these traits.

Credit all content in line with the markbands. Marks should be allocated according to the paper 3 part B markbands. These can be found under the “Your tests” tab > supplemental materials. Credit unexpected approaches wherever relevant.

Financial flows include trade, capital movements, aid and debt payments and remittances. These flows can be increased or decreased according to the political frameworks they must operate in at varying scales. Governments may be national but there are also local governments and multi-governmental organizations to consider too. Actions include incentives but also penalties and sanctions.

Possible applied themes (AO2) include knowledge and understanding (AO1) of:

• The political opening-up of emerging economies (India, China) with new markets for exploitation.
• National investment rules and laws that allow TNCs to deploy (or not) financial strategies such as mergers and acquisitions and joint ventures.
• Political actions to establish lower production costs for TNCs in export processing zones.
• MGOs creating the opportunity to operate within trading blocs with low tariff barriers.
• Political decisions by governments to opt out of globalization / global data flows (eg, US technology companies cannot invest or sell their services easily in China).
• Political decisions by governments to provide aid and loans.
• Political decisions by governments affecting migration, which in turn fosters remittances.

Good answers may synthesize (AO3a) three or more of the above (or other) themes in a well-structured way (AO4).

Good answers may additionally offer a critical evaluation (AO3b) of the statement, which discusses how government actions connect and interact with the financial decisions of other stakeholder eg TNCs. Another approach might be to critically discuss how financial flows linking particular places might be either increased or decreased. Another approach might be to discuss the relative importance of government actions at different scales. A good discussion may conclude with a substantiated final judgement on the relative importance or significance of different kinds of action.

Do not over-credit a detailed discussion of the actions of non-governmental stakeholders (TNCs, NGOs, etc.) unless the account is logically linked with government actions and attitudes (e.g. discussion of how governments allow or disallow FDI, free trade etc.).

For 5–8 marks, expect weakly evidenced and/or imbalanced outlining of two or three relevant themes.

For 9–12 marks, expect:

• either a structured synthesis that links together several well-evidenced themes from the Guide
• or a critical conclusion (or ongoing evaluation) informed by geographical concepts and/or perspectives.

For 13–16 marks, expect both of these traits.

Question 1 was by far the most popular on the paper. The overwhelming majority of candidates experienced no difficulty obtaining a middle or upper mark-band score through the delivery of a satisfactory account of hostility against migration in one or more countries. Great use was made of contemporary examples and political movements in the UK, USA and France especially. The best responses were accurate, detailed and were able to engage with the issues in an academic and objective way.

There was a tendency among some weaker candidates to offer more sensationalist, generalized and less well-evidenced accounts of the politics of Donald Trump or the Brexit political movement. In a small number of cases, candidates wrote about xenophobic nationalism so carelessly that it raised concerns that these might be their own views rather than objective reporting of hate-fuelled politics. Candidates are reminded to take great care when carrying out an analysis of sensitive issues.

The main reason why relatively few candidates obtained full marks in this question was neglect of the phrase "recent and widespread rise" in the question. Too often, answers were focused on events in one or two countries and whilst the detail was excellent no explicit mention of the wider global context was made. The best candidates, in contrast, understood that the question was providing them with an opportunity to analyse how, in recent decades, globalization has accelerated at such a rapid rate that many individuals and societies have felt compelled to react against it. Hence the rise of populist movements is a recent and widespread phenomenon.

This question was focused on global financial flows and governments. Popular themes included international aid, the imposition of taxes and tariffs, and legal frameworks for foreign direct investment, including the establishment of special economic zones. Together, these three themes were sufficient for a high mark to be awarded provided sufficient evidence had been provided and a strong focus maintained on the role of government.

Weaker candidates typically failed to provide much evidence or to maintain a strict focus on the actions of governments. Thus, they were able to write about businesses and their investments overseas but could say very little about how this was linked with government actions. Similarly, candidates who discussed import taxes affecting trade often wrote at great length about movements of commodities without mentioning the reciprocal financial flows which trade generates.

The best answers reaching the highest mark band were able to provide a proper discussion of what might be meant by "the actions of government" - for example, they were able to establish a link between policies designed to manage migration and the linked impact this can have on remittance flows. They were therefore able to distinguish between direct and indirect effects on financial flows. In some cases, the best answers explored government actions at different geographic scales, ranging from city councils through to the European Union and other intergovernmental organizations. Finally, some very good answers
discussed the power balance between the actions of governments and businesses, for example in relation to tax havens.