As Britain heads to the polls Thursday for the historic decision on whether the country should remain part of the European Union or leave the block, one issue has been front and centre of the Leave campaign. Immigration. Since 2005, when the citizens of EU countries were allowed to live and work freely in member states, hundreds of thousands of Europeans, many from eastern countries have settled in the UK, establishing businesses and changing the nature of some communities. While this has boosted the number of workers paying taxes it has also put a strain on local services such as schools and hospitals. From London, Catherine Drew reports.
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Artur Kieruzal hosts a three hour show everyday on PRL24, a polish radio station broadcasting a mix of news, chat and music.
The polish community is the second largest group in the UK after migrants from India and is well established.
So much so that on phone-ins, Polish people say they are not concerned about the prospects of a Brexit.
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They are not afraid, they pay taxes, they work here, and for them there will be not any difference maybe in the free movement, if they want to go to spain on holiday, they may apply some visa or something, but to be honest nobody knows."
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Fears about immigration have increased as Europe deals with its refugee crisis.
Hammering this message has been Nigel Farage, leader of the right wing UK Independence Party or UKIP, who recently put a bet on a Brexit outcome. He says other countries including many from the Commonwealth will benefit in the event of a brexit
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"Well it would help them because at the moment we are discriminating very heavily against them because of the open door to Southern and Eastern Europe and given the problems in the eurozone, so I think what we'll have is a much more equitably and fair immigration system and I think particularly former commonwealth countries will feel very encouraged by that."
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On the issue of Immigration, opinion at the betting shop - as in the country - is divided.
VOX
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Those arguing for the UK to remain inside the EU, like the Prime Minister, have found themselves on the defensive on the issue ofimmigration, arguing most migrants work and pay taxes….. and the costs of leaving the block outweigh the benefits. Answering questions on Immigration from a tv studio audience, the Prime Minister said leaving the EU block was not the answer.
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We do need to do things to control immigration like restricting in-work welfare (payments) but it would be madness to try to do that by trashing our economy and pulling out of the single market."
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The arguments over what effect immigration has on Britain and how it will continue to impact the country will be a key factor as the nation decides whether its future lies in or out of Europe.
Catherine Drew, SOC, London