Migrant numbers from EU tumble
Fewer immigrants to UK from Europe
UK: Net long-term migration to the UK fell below a quarter of a million in 2016 for the first time in nearly three years as arrivals from eastern and central European countries plunged.
The overall measure – the difference between the number of people arriving and leaving the country – was estimated to be 248,000 last year.
NET LONG-TERM migration to the UK fell below a quarter of a million in 2016 for the first time in nearly three years as arrivals from eastern and central European countries plunged dramatically.
The overall measure – the difference between the number of people arriving and leaving the country – was estimated to be 248,000 last year.
This was a “statistically significant” fall of 84,000 compared with the figure recorded in 2015, according to the Office for National Statistics (ONS).
The new figures from the ONS give the fullest picture yet of immigration around the EU referendum vote last year. Britain’s settlement following departure from the bloc is expected to include restrictions on free movement rules, although the precise arrangements for post-Brexit immigration are yet to be thrashed out.
Ahead of the General Election on June 8, the Conservatives have maintained their objective of reducing annual net migration to the tens of thousands. In its election manifesto, Labour said it was offering “fair rules and reasonable management of migration” – but dismissed targets as “bogus”.
Dr Carlos Vargas-Silva, the acting director of the Migration Observatory at the University of Oxford, said: “While public opinion in the UK has supported reductions in immigration for many years, achieving these sorts of cuts is difficult in practice.
“It seems unlikely that we will see net migration in the ‘tens of thousands’ in the near future without either an economic downturn, or a new set of much more restrictive immigration policies.
“Even with the current low levels of net migration from the EU8 countries, the total estimate is still more than twice the Government’s target.”
Statisticians said the change in long-term international net migration – covering people coming to and leaving the country for at least 12 months – was driven by a rise in emigration, which was up 40,000 on 2015.
This was made up mainly of EU citizens, with the number departing at an estimated 117,000 – a rise of 31,000 on the previous 12 months.
The figures – the last official migration data before next month’s election – show citizens from eight central and eastern European nations have partly driven the changes. Immigration from the so-called EU8 states – the Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Slovakia and Slovenia – was down by 25,000 to 48,000, while emigration increased by 16,000 to 43,000 last year.
The total estimate is still more than twice the Government’s target. Dr Carlos Vargas-Silva, of the University of Oxford.