Just one in 10 Britons would object to neighbours of a different race while only 15 per cent do not want immigrants living next door, a new study has found.

Research has shown that British prejudice against immigrants is among the lowest in Europe, and comparable to most other wealthy EU and English speaking nations.

US researchers said the findings challenge the prevailing attitudes about Brexit suggesting that the vast majority of people in Britain do not have an issue with immigration.

"In the media turmoil surrounding Brexit, many pundits have seized on the prejudice angle, but these data demonstrate that is not actually what makes the UK different from the Continent," said co-author Professor Mariah Evans of the University of Nevada, Reno.

"Prejudice against immigrant workers or minority ethnic and religious groups is rare in the UK, perhaps even slightly rarer than in equivalently developed EU countries.

“Even though only a small minority is prejudiced, in a large population that still makes many people - enough to show up in anti-immigrant demonstrations or to mobilize letter-writing campaigns to MPs.

"In many ways, I think the key message is that there are other things besides the immigrants and foreign workers issue that have made many UK folk want more autonomy from the EU."