Net migration to the UK was 606,000 in 2022, according to the latest data, a record figure for a 12-month period.
According to the Office for National Statistics, around 1.2 million people arrived in the UK last year intending to stay for a year or more, while emigration was 557,000, meaning the UK population grew by 606,000.
The net migration figure was 118,000 higher than the year to December 2021, but at a similar level to the year to June 2022.
The ONS said the increase was driven by a sharp rise in non-EU nationals coming to the UK, who accounted for 80% of total immigration. Non-EU immigration was estimated at around 925,000 for 2022, an increase of 287,000 compared with 2021.
In comparison, just 151,000 EU nationals entered the UK in the year to December 2022, a decrease of 45,000 compared with the year before.
For the first time, this year’s figures include asylum seekers looking for refuge in the UK. Around one in 12 non-EU migrants came via this route, the ONS said. Some 6,500 are still waiting for a decision as to whether they can stay in the UK as refugees.
Net migration
High levels of immigration will be ‘the norm’ in the UK
A surge in students arriving into the UK after restrictions were eased in 2021, it found, but these individuals are now leaving the country, with the overall share of non-EU immigration from students falling last year. Students made up 39% of people arriving from non-EU countries, down from 47% in 2021.
Those seeking humanitarian refuge increased, however. The proportion arriving via these routes, including those on Ukrainian refugee schemes, rose from 9% to 19%.
Commenting on the figures, the ONS said that the lifting of pandemic restrictions in 2022 led to “record levels of international immigration to the UK”.
“The main drivers of the increase were people coming to the UK from non-EU countries for work, study and for humanitarian purposes, including those arriving from Ukraine and Hong Kong,” it added.
Prime minister Rishi Sunak said the numbers were “too high, it’s as simple as that”.
Shadow home secretary Yvette Cooper pointed out that there had been a 119% increase in work visas granted in the year to March 2023, claiming this was evidence the government had “no plan and no grip” on the immigration system.
Yesterday, the government announced new restrictions on student visa routes that would cut net migration numbers “while protecting the economic benefits students bring to the UK”.
The new rules would mean that foreign postgraduate students on non-research courses would no longer be able to bring family members to the UK under their visa. Last year, 135,788 visas were granted to dependants of foreign students, the government said.
In successive election manifestos, the Conservative party has pledged to reduce immigration to “tens of thousands” per year.
Speaking on BBC Breakfast this morning, Dr Peter Walsh from Oxford University’s Migration Observatory said such targets would always be difficult to meet because “the UK is a popular destination for students, for workers”.
Over the past decade, net migration figures have stayed between 250,000 and 350,000 people.
Chetal Patel, partner and head of immigration at Bates Wells, said: “Labour shortages have caused severe damage to the UK’s economy. Healthy immigration levels and an effective visa system are crucial to help businesses access the talent they so desperately need.
“The government is making it very hard to access low-skilled workers, enormously reducing the labour pool for certain sectors. Businesses are having to increase wages to attract and retain talent, that sounds superficially attractive but it is driving some employers out of businesses and helping to fuel a wage inflationary spiral.”
She added that the government had been “pragmatic” about visas for highly skilled workers, but that the cost of the system was prohibitive for smaller employers.
Earlier this week, research from the CIPD showed that only 15% of employers had used the new points-based system to sponsor skilled workers, and it had not improved investment in local talent.
Ben Willmott, head of public policy at the HR body, said that it was important to recognise that only a “relatively small proportion” of migrants are coming to work.
“It’s essential the UK’s immigration system succeeds in its aim of enabling employers to bring in migrant workers for skilled roles which are otherwise hard to fill. However, just 15% of typically larger employers have sponsored migrant workers since January 2021. This suggests policymakers should continue to refine the system to make it as flexible and user-friendly as possible, for example by extending the Youth Mobility Scheme to EU nationals,” he said.
Angela Barnes, head of business immigration at AfterAthena, added: “For many businesses, deciding whether to invest in talent from abroad or at home is a continuous balancing act. The government’s continuous flip-flopping between which job market is in need of foreign workers and which is not, makes it difficult for employers to plan ahead.
“My clients are often asking when the government will make an exemption for their sector, so more long-term policy structure needs to be set so that businesses can make sure their pipeline of incoming talent is sustainable. This will have a huge impact for many businesses, particularly in the care sector, where early switching was prevalent.”
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