According to data from the UK Office for National Statistics (ONS), the net immigration figure in the UK has reached a new historic high. In the year ending December 2022, based on revised data, the estimated net migration in the UK reached a record-breaking 745,000.
The previous estimate for the year ending December 2022 was 606,000, but due to some “specific reasons,” the ONS has revised this figure upwards. The new data also shows that in the year ending June 2023, the preliminary estimate for net migration is 672,000, higher than the previous year’s 607,000.
The figure for June 2023 is nearly three times the average level of 200,000 to 250,000 per year before Brexit and breaks the government’s 2019 pledge to reduce the overall level of net migration from the then level of 226,000. The surge in net migration has led to the largest annual population growth in England and Wales since the baby boom peak year of 1962.
According to ONS data, in the year ending mid-2022, the UK population increased by 578,000, or 1%, reaching 60.2 million. “Unlike 1962 when population growth was primarily due to high birth rates, by mid-2022, population growth was mainly due to the increase in net international migration,” ONS stated.
This increase is mainly attributed to 1.2 million immigrants from outside the EU entering the UK for study, work, or to escape conflict or oppression. ONS estimates that 508,000 people emigrated from the UK. These numbers undoubtedly put pressure on the Prime Minister, prompting calls for him to take radical new measures to reduce the number of workers and their dependents obtaining visas to live and work in the UK.
In a statement by the new conservatives, over 20 MPs stated that the surge in net migration poses a survival threat to the party and called for urgent measures to reduce immigration. They stated, “High migration rates depress wages, reduce investment in skills and technology, place unsustainable pressure on housing and public services, and threaten community cohesion.”
“The term ‘existential’ has been used frequently in recent days, but for our party, it truly is existential. Each of us has made commitments to voters. Such commitments cannot be ignored. The government must present a comprehensive set of measures today to fulfill the commitments made in the manifesto before the next election. We will evaluate any such proposals and publicly report on whether they will meet the commitments made to voters. The Prime Minister, Chancellor, and the new Home Secretary must show that they stand by the commitments made by our elected parliament. We must take action immediately.”
It is reported that ministers are considering banning healthcare workers from bringing dependents into the UK or restricting it to one dependent per visa, raising the minimum wage threshold for work visas from £26,200 to over £30,000, and eliminating wage threshold discounts for shortage occupation workers.
The day before these data were released, the budget watchdog warned the Prime Minister that if he continues his policies, net migration will not be reduced to pre-pandemic levels by 2027.
The Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) stated that in the next five years, an additional 150,000 immigrants will come to the UK, and overall, by 2028-29, immigration will increase the UK population by about 1.5 million.
In response to this, the newly appointed Home Secretary, James Cleverly, stated that the immigration figures “do not show a significant increase,” but “we are working across government to further take action to prevent abuse and manipulation of our visa system.”
The latest data shows that as of June 2023, an estimated total of 1.18 million people arrived in the UK, with 508,000 possibly having left, resulting in a net migration figure of 672,000. In the year ending June 2023, the majority of those arriving in the UK were from non-EU countries (968,000), followed by EU nationals (129,000) and British nationals (84,000).
During this period, study visas remained the largest contributors to non-EU immigration, accounting for 39%, essentially unchanged from the previous period. Among non-EU immigrants, the second-largest contributors were immigrants coming to work in the UK, accounting for 33%, up from 23% in the previous period, mainly attributed to a large number of people entering the UK with health and care visas.
The proportion of people arriving through humanitarian routes decreased from 19% to 9%, with most being UK nationals (overseas) arriving from Hong Kong and Ukrainians.