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Merkel is right - multiculturalism has utterly failed

Criticism of immigration and multiculturalism has long been a taboo in Germany where, mindful of the legacy of World War II, politicians have avoided speaking in anything but broadly positive terms of the country’s racially mixed society. Until this week, that is, when Chancellor Angela Merkel said that the so-called “multikulti” approach – “that we are now living side by side and are happy about it” – does not work. “This approach has failed, utterly.”

Germany began to attract immigrants in the 1960s when Turks and others arrived as so-called guest workers (gastarbeiter) to fill the labour vacuum left by the nation’s war dead. In her speech, Merkel said, “We kidded ourselves for a while that they wouldn’t stay, but that’s not the reality.” Today, an estimated seven million German residents are of foreign origin, including some 4.3m Muslims.

But is Merkel right to see this as a problem? And does the rise of antagonism towards Islam represent anything more than racism? Given Europe’s aging population and our urgent need for a young, qualified workforce, can the Germans or any other western country afford to turn its nose up at new immigrants? Are we right to be scared of the social changes migration brings, or should we get on with enjoying its benefits?

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