An interesting and well balanced article about Luton from todays New Statesman

Good Migrations

"Luton – described as a breeding ground for militants and a tinderbox of racial tension – has an image problem. The Home Secretary and the press predict a riot, but local people beg to differ."

"A former industrial town situated on the edge of the Home Counties, it has long been looked down on by its well-to-do neighbours. Its diverse population is the story of postwar British immigration in miniature: from the 1950s onwards, successive waves of workers - Irish, Caribbean, Asian, African, eastern European - have made this place their home. Since the 11 September 2001 attacks, its large south Asian Muslim population (30,000 in a town of 184,000) has been under intense scrutiny, and particularly so since Luton-based Islamic extremists were alleged to have been involved in the 2005 London Tube bombings."

Kelvin Hopkins, Labour MP for Luton North since 1997, has spent three decades working in the town. Unlike his Labour colleague Moran, Hopkins has come through the expenses scandal well, winning praise for his frugal approach to parliamentary allowances.

"People change over time," the MP says. "There is a parallel with the Irish Catholic community and their integration into Britain. If you go back 40 years, there was deep prejudice against Irish Catholics; many of them felt very alien in this non-religious country that had dominated and brutalised them over the previous century. Over time, they've totally relaxed, particularly since the Good Friday Agreement. Now we have a Luton Irish forum, [and] a St Patrick's Day parade in the town. It's fantastic. But you couldn't imagine that happening 30 or 40 years ago."