One in ten people living in the UK were born abroad
December 09 2009 by Liam Clifford
New figures show that more than one in ten of the people now living in the UK were born elsewhere.
The proportion of the population of the UK that is
foreign-born has doubled over the past 20 years and now stands at 11 per cent,
the equivalent of 6.7 million people.
A key factor in the increase has
been the addition of new countries to the European Union, the citizens of which
are free to move to the UK to look for work and a better life for their
families.
The Office for National Statistics figures also show that
almost 25 per cent of the babies born in England and Wales have foreign-born
mothers. This percentage translates to 170,834 babies, which is the highest
number measured since records began.
Although the figures have caused
controversy among some right-wing, anti-immigration organisations, they also
show that the UK has successfully created a diverse population.
Labour’s UK
immigration policies have also boosted the workforce considerably with hundreds
of thousands of people coming to work in the UK from Eastern European countries
like Poland – helping to boost the economy during the recent boom years.
See the latest Immigration News
