Guests Catherine Barnard and Emmanuelle Auriol discuss how migration affects labour markets, legal protections and social cohesion, how economic incentives and border regimes shape who migrates and why, and what smarter, fairer migration policies could look like in the years ahead.

In this final episode of season 4, Richard Westcott is joined by Catherine Barnard (University of Cambridge) and Emmanuelle Auriol (Toulouse School of Economics) to unpack the economic, legal, and social dimensions of migration.

Drawing on insights from law and economics, the conversation explores how migration affects labour markets, legal protections, and social cohesion, from post-Brexit realities in Great Yarmouth to global questions of fairness and opportunity. The episode examines who moves and why, the limits of current border regimes, and what more effective and ethical migration policies could look like.

Season 4 Episode 10 transcript – Word / PDF
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For more information about the Crossing Channels podcast series and the work of the Bennett School of Public Policy and IAST visit our websites at https://www.bennettschool.cam.ac.uk/ and https://www.iast.fr/.

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With thanks to:

Audio production by Steve Hankey
Associate production by Burcu Sevde Selvi
Visuals by Tiffany Naylor and Aurore Carbonnel
More information about our host and guests:


How does migration change our world?

University of Cambridge