Foreign-born population of Great Britain, 2001
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In 2005 the Institute for Public Policy Research published an analysis of data from the 2001 UK Census, revealing the number of people included in the census who were born outside the British Isles, where they live, and comparing this information against the 1991 Census.[1] The results were made available on the BBC website. Of the total population increase of 2.2 million between the two censuses, 1.1 million was represented by people born abroad. 4,301,280 people (7.53% of the total population) were born abroad, although the census gives no indication of their immigration status or intended length of stay - many people, particularly the young, come to live in the UK for a few months or years before returning to their own country.
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[edit] Origin of foreign-born population
The most common countries of birth for foreign-born British residents in 2001 were:
- Republic of Ireland - 498,850 people
- India - 466,416 people
- Pakistan - 320,767 people
- Germany - 262,276 people (although a large portion are thought to be German-born children of British military personnel)
- The Caribbean - 254,740 people
- The USA - 155,030 people.
The Republic of Ireland was the birthplace of 498,850 people, a decline of 97,433 from 1991, but for the purpose of this survey and in British law they are not considered "foreign", even though they are a separate nation and independent from the United Kingdom. The rationale for this was that there have never been controls placed on the level of migration between the UK and the Republic of Ireland.
The greatest percentage increases in foreign-born population between the two censuses (frequently from very low bases) were from:
- Albania - 1374% (from a base of 154 people)
- Former Yugoslavia - 242% (from a base of 13,846)
- Sierra Leone - 170% (from 6,280).
- Greece - 142% (from 14,459).
- Zimbabwe - 130% (from 21,427).
[edit] Location of foreign-born population
The non-native-born population tends to be strongly attracted to London and the South East region - 1.7 million foreign-born live in London, representing 25% of the city's total population, although 52% of Wembley's population was born abroad.
| Region | Number | % Proportion of total (2001) | % Proportion of total (1991) |
|---|---|---|---|
| London | 1,779,300 | 24.81 | 18.46 |
| South East | 580,417 | 7.25 | 5.68 |
| West Midlands | 342,269 | 6.50 | 5.26 |
| East of England | 328,131 | 6.09 | 5.05 |
| North West | 280,055 | 4.16 | 3.17 |
| Yorkshire and Humberside | 235,424 | 4.74 | 3.72 |
| East Midlands | 224,623 | 5.38 | 4.46 |
| South West | 218,348 | 4.43 | 3.53 |
| Scotland | 168,142 | 3.32 | 2.50 |
| Wales | 77,312 | 2.66 | 2.20 |
| North East | 67,259 | 2.67 | 1.87 |
[edit] Reference
- ^ Sarah Kyambi, Beyond Black and White: Mapping new immigrant communities, London: Institute for Public Policy Research, 7 September 2005, accessed 20 January 2007
