29 May 2009
By Vivienne Russell
England has absorbed the vast majority of migrants to the UK over the past two decades, according to figures obtained by a group of MPs.
The cross-party group on balanced migration said that 92% of net international migration to the UK since 1991 was to England. It accused ministers of being ‘in denial’ on the issue.
According to figures obtained by the MPs from national statistician Karen Dunnell, England absorbed 20 times more international migrants than Scotland despite having a population only 10 times as big.
The imbalance is reflected in population projections. Official population forecasts to 2051 show that 95% of the expected increase in population will be in England.
In a joint statement, Labour MP Frank Field and Conservative MP Nicholas Soames, who co-chair the group, said: ‘This research shows that immigration is overwhelmingly an issue for England rather than other parts of the UK. England can expect a population increase of nearly 10 million people in the next 20 years of so, of which 7 million will be thanks to new immigration.
‘The political establishment is in denial on immigration – even though it is of concern to nearly 80% of the population.’
The balanced migration group counts former Archbishop of Canterbury George Carey and Bill Jordan, former president of the AEEU union, among its members. It believes immigration levels should be brought down to the level of emigration.
Tim Finch, head of migration at the Institute for Public Policy Research, said: ‘Immigration responds to the demands of the economy, so migrants will inevitably head to where the jobs are. I do feel quite uncomfortable, though, with the timing of this and the message that migration is a problem or a particularly English one.’
A UK Border Agency spokeswoman said: ‘We have made huge changes to the immigration system, including banning low-skilled workers from outside Europe, tightening the criteria for highly skilled migrants, border controls, fingerprint visas, increased deportation rates and other measures.
‘As a result we are already seeing reductions in the numbers coming here. Migration brings benefits to the UK but we know of its impacts too.’
