HC Deb 08 June 2004 vol 422 cc375-6W
Mr. Brazier

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what estimate he has made of the number of(a) migrants in the UK and (b) dependant children of migrants aged under 16 years who were born (i) in and (ii) outside the UK. [177445]

Ruth Kelly

The information requested falls within the responsibility of the National Statistician, who has been asked to reply.

Letter from Len Cook to Mr. Julian Brazier, dated 8 June 2004:

As National Statistician and Registrar General for England and Wales, I have been asked to reply to your recent question asking what estimate has been made of the number of (a) migrants in the UK and (b) dependent children of migrants aged under 16 years who were born (i) in and (ii) outside the UK. (177445)

For the purposes of this question, a 'migrant' is taken to be a person resident in the UK who was born in another country. The 2001 Census estimated that 4,643,086 residents of England and Wales were born outside the UK: this represents 8.9 per cent. of the total population of England and Wales. The figure can be derived from table KS05 in the "Census 2001 Key Statistics for local authorities in England and Wales' report which is available in the House of Commons Library.

Information on the country of birth of the dependent children of such 'migrants' is currently unavailable. However, you may wish to note that the Census recorded a total of 11,665,266 dependent children in England and Wales, of which 430,623 were born outside the UK. These figures are provided in table T12 in the "Census 2001 National report for England and Wales", which is also available in the House of Commons Library.

The above figures for people born outside the UK will include people born in the Republic of Ireland and some UK citizens who happen to be born outside the UK, such as children born to Armed Forces personnel when the family was stationed overseas.

Mr. Alan Duncan

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will list the net non-EU migration to the UK in each year since 1979. [177089]

Ruth Kelly

The information requested falls within the responsibility of the National Statistician, who has been asked to reply.

Letter from Len Cook to Mr. Alan Duncan, dated 8 June 2004:

As National Statistician, I have been asked to reply to your question regarding estimates of net non-European Union migration to the United Kingdom since 1979. (177089)

These estimates are shown in the attached table. The phrase "non-European Union migration" has been interpreted as referring to the citizenship of migrants as opposed to, for example, their country of birth or country of last residence.

Please note that the definition for the European Union does not include the ten states that joined on 1 May 2004, nor does it include the non—EU states in the European Economic Area. The countries included are Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Portugal, Spain, Sweden and the United Kingdom.

International migration of people who are not citizens of EU countries, time series 1979 to 2002, United Kingdom
Thousand
Inflow Outflow Balance
1979 98.7 49.5 49.2
1980 88.9 57.2 31.7
1981 81.0 53.0 28.0
1982 85.8 59.8 25.9
1983 92.3 50.5 41.7
1984 86.1 51.3 34.8
1985 98.4 52.5 45.9
1986 94.2 68.2 26.0
1987 87.8 58.0 29.8
1988 99.3 70.3 28.9
1989 114.2 61.2 53.0
1990 123.7 65.2 58.6
1991 166.5 77.5 89.0
1992 131.4 87.6 43.9
1993 135.0 77.3 57.7
1994 155.8 70.9 84.9
1995 166.8 63.0 103.8
1996 151.7 64.0 87.7
1997 165.6 77.4 88.2
1998 205.4 76.9 128.6
1999 270.8 93.0 177.8
2000 316.2 102.6 213.6
2001 312.9 99.4 213.5
2002 355.4 122.0 233.4
Notes:
1. Data for 1979–90 are based on the International Passenger Survey (IPS) only. Data for 1991–2002 are based mainly on data from the IPS but also include adjustments for (1) those whose intended length of stay changes so that their migrant status changes; (2) asylum seekers and their dependants not covered by the IPS; and (3) flows between the UK and the Republic of Ireland. This means that figures for years from 1991 onwards include all categories of migrants and therefore represent total international migration, while figures for years prior to 1991 exclude certain categories of migration. 2. The estimates for years from 1991 onwards are compiled using the following main sources of migration data in addition to the IPS: Home Office data on asylum seekers and their dependants, and people who entered the UK as short-term visitors but were subsequently granted an extension of stay for a year or longer for other reasons, for example, as students or on the basis of marriage; and estimates of migration between the UK and the Irish Republic.