Sharp Fall In Net Migration As Fewer People Arrive U.K.
UK net migration fell to an estimated 728,000 in the year to June 2024, down 20 percent from a record high of 906,000 the previous year, official figures showed on Thursday.
Support for ex-premier Rishi Sunak’s party was badly hit by the Tories’ failure to deliver on promises to reduce the migration figures, with many voters defecting to the anti-immigration Reform UK party.
The latest figures come as the Office for National Statistics (ONS) also revised upwards the figure for the year to June 2023.
It said net migration — the difference between the number of people arriving in Britain and those leaving — was 906,000 for the period, 166,000 higher than its previous estimate of 740,000.
The data showed that overall some 1.2 million people are estimated to have arrived in the UK in the year to June 2024, while around 479,000 left.
The drop in arrivals is partly attributed to rule changes introduced by the Conservatives in January that restrict the ability of most international students to bring family members to the UK.
The ONS said another factor was “the large number of students who came to the UK post-pandemic now reaching the end of their courses”.
The Conservatives won a landslide under the leadership of Boris Johnson at the 2019 election, largely on a promise to bring net migration numbers down.
The party repeatedly promised that leaving the European Union, which ended the free movement of people from member states, would allow the UK to “take back control” of its borders.
But regular migration has soared since Britain formally left the EU in January 2020. In 2021, net migration was 488,000.
The Labour government also warned on Thursday that employers who flout visa rules or fail to pay the minimum wage could face lengthy bars from hiring foreign workers.
Measures introduced through the government’s Employment Rights Bill -– which is currently making its way through parliament -– would see the length of time companies can be sanctioned double to two years.
Migration minister Seema Malhotra said the government was committed to “ensure those who abuse our immigration system face the strongest possible consequences”.
“No longer will employers be able to flout the rules with little consequence or exploit international workers for costs they were always supposed to pay if they choose not to recruit domestically,” she added.
Meanwhile, the number of undocumented migrants arriving in the UK after crossing the Channel on dangerous rudimentary vessels stands at over 33,500, up around 18 percent compared to the same period in 2023. Numbers are down on 2022.
