Thesis (M.Sc.) - Cairo University - Faculty of Economics and Political Science - Department of Political Science

The major research question of this study centers on why there exists a huge variation in the levels of representation of immigrant-origin citizens in the legislative institutions of Western European countries despite the fact that these countries share a lot of similarities. It uses the most similar systems design by holding a comparison between Spain and the UK. It has been confirmed that the concept of Spanish identity is more ethnically oriented than that The United Kingdom{u2019}s. This has been reflected in the restrictiveness of the Spanish naturalization regime, compared to the British one. Moreover, it transpired that the cultural integration regime adopted by Spain is less welcoming of cultural diversity than United Kingdom{u2019}s.Spain adopted "interculturalism", a middle way model between multiculturalism and assimilation while The United Kingdom was a salient example of multiculturalism.It has also been proven that the Spanish political party system is more closed towards citizens of immigrant origin than the British one.This is further supported by a restrictive electoral system that hinders their representation in the former country

Issued also as CD