258,000 more people moved to Britain than emigrated, official figures show for the year 2018.
Official figures show that the UK government missed its target of reducing net migration, as migrants carry on adding to the population for the 37th year in a row.
The government revealed that the last official migration figures show that 258,000 more people moved to the UK than left in 2018.
Taking a more, in depth look at the data from the Office For National Statistics, it’s evident that EU long-term immigration has actually fallen since 2016, with 201,000 people from EU nations arriving and 127,000 leaving.
Non-EU net migration has slowly gone up in the last five years, with 232,000 more non-EU citizens arriving than leaving last year.
The statistics are actually at odds with pro-Brexit announcements, stating that control of migration is being taken back, through ending freedom of movement and as the increase in net migration is caused by non-EU migration.
Since being unveiled in 2010, May has been firmly on the side of the government’s net migration target; in both of her official government roles: PM and Home Secretary, although receiving frequent warnings against using this kind of metric.
The director of the migration thinktank British Future, Sunder Katwala, said that, these will be May’s final immigration figures. He went on to say that, the net migration target was a promise to voters that could actually never be kept. The public’s trust in the government’s ability to manage immigration has consequently reached a very low point. He advises that her successor should conclude it’s time to move on from this past record.
The statistics showed that the number of work visas increased by 11%, with tier 2 (skilled) work visas having increased by 15%.
The removal of doctors and nurses from the tier 2 cap, the Home Office said, had led to a 62% increase in the number of applications for skilled work in the human health and social work sector.
Caroline Nokes, the immigration minister, said that, these numbers demonstrate that the UK continues to attract skilled workers. For example, doctors and nurses, who play a key role in supporting communities and improving the economy, while ensuring employers can get access to the workers they need. Leaving the EU, our new immigration system will provide us with greater control over who does arrive here.
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