BORN ABROAD
Where were immigrants in the UK born? This map shows the top 60 countries, scaled to represent the number each contributes to our population
ONE in every 10 immigrants living in the UK was born in Poland.
Data from the Office for National Statistics shows there were some 922,000 Polish people registered as living in our country at the end of 2017.
They account for 9.8 per cent of the 9.4 million immigrants living in the UK - the biggest proportion from any country.
Other countries that make up a large proportion include India (one in every 11 immigrants in the UK) and Pakistan (one in every 18).
Romania and Ireland both account for one in every 24 immigrants living here.
Meanwhile, one in every 30 immigrants comes from Germany and one in every 36 is from Bangladesh.
Also in the top 10 countries where the greatest number of immigrants were born is Italy (one in 40), South Africa (one in 41), and China (one in
43). Of the countries with data available, the fewest people have come from Zambia - accounting for one in every 335 immigrants. Colombia, Malta, the Ukraine and Saudi Arabia make up the rest of the bottom five countries that account for the smallest proportion of UK immigrants - where data is available, at least.
The data only shows the top 60 countries where immigrants come from, so there will be people living in the UK who were born in other countries that make up an even smaller part of the total number of immigrants.
One in every two immigrants are living in the UK as a spouse or dependent of a UK citizen, while one in every three immigrants comes to the UK because of work.
One in every eight immigrants lives here because they are studying, while one in every seven lives here for other reasons - including seeking asylum.
In the past decade alone, the number of immigrants in the UK has risen by three million.
While the figure might sound high, it’s a net increase of fewer than one immigrant a day.
And while Polish people currently make up the largest proportion of immigrants currently in the UK, 10 years ago India had the highest proportion (again one in 10).
A spokesperson from the embassy of the Republic of Poland said: “The main driving factor for Polish people coming to live in the UK are higher wages.
“They are also attracted by the opportunities that this country offers in terms of employment, education and a favourable exchange rate.
“Polish people see the UK as a place where they can develop their skills, gain invaluable work experience and qualifications, and earn money with which they can afford to buy more in Poland. “Living in the UK is also a great opportunity for Poles to learn the English language and experience a whole new culture. “Economically, the benefits for the UK of Polish people coming here to live permanently are that Poles are very hard-working, reliable employees. “As statistics show, Poles pride themselves in the highest rate of individuals in employment or further education among all ethnic groups in Britain – at 92 per cent.”