A taskforce report recommended a range of measures designed to deliver more timely, comprehensive official statistics covering both long- and short-term migration.
Source: Report of the Inter-departmental Task Force on Migration Statistics, Office for National Statistics (0845 601 3034)
Links: Report | Summary | ONS press release | BBC report
Date: 2006-Dec
A think-tank report said that around 5.5 million British nationals lived overseas permanently (equivalent to 9.2 per cent of the United Kingdom population). In addition, an estimated 500,000 British people lived abroad for part of the year, mainly through owning second homes. By 2050, 1 in 5 would live overseas.
Source: Dhananjayan Sriskandarajah and Catherine Drew, Brits Abroad: Mapping the scale and nature of British emigration, Institute for Public Policy Research, available from Central Books (0845 458 9911)
Links: Summary | IPPR press release | FCO press release
Date: 2006-Dec
In 2005, 565,000 people arrived in the United Kingdom saying they intended to stay for at least a year. In the same period, 380,000 people left, more than half of whom were British citizens. The net inflow of people was 17,000 lower than in 2004.
Source: Press release 2 November 2006, Office for National Statistics (0845 601 3034)
Links: ONS press release | OPT press release | FT report | BBC report | Guardian report
Date: 2006-Nov
In 2004 there was an estimated net immigration to the United Kingdom of 223,000 migrants, almost 50 per cent higher than in 2003.
Source: Control of Immigration: Statistics United Kingdom 2005, Cm 6904, Home Office, TSO (0870 600 5522)
Links: Report | Home Office press release
Date: 2006-Aug
By 30 June 2006 there had been 447,000 applications to the worker registration scheme for people from the 10 countries which joined the European Union in May 2004 - compared to an original government estimate of 15,000.
Source: Accession Monitoring Report: May 2004 June 2006, Home Office and other departments (web publication only)
Links: Report | Home Office press release | CIPD press release | IAS press release | CBI press release | Guardian report
Date: 2006-Aug
A report said that there should be a strategic review of the data, and data management systems, supporting the operation, monitoring, and development of all immigration controls. There was insufficient user consultation about the nature of the statistics.
Source: Denis Allnutt, Review of Home Office Publications of Control of Immigration Statistics, National Statistics Quality Review Series/Report 46, Home Office (0870 000 1585)
Links: Report | IAS press release
Date: 2006-Aug
A study found that the location of a person's closest friends mattered substantially in their mobility decisions, and mattered more than the frequency of contacts.
Source: Mich le Belot and John Ermisch, Friendship Ties and Geographical Mobility: Evidence from the BHPS, Working Paper 2006-33, Institute for Social and Economic Research/University of Essex (01206 873087)
Links: Working paper
Date: 2006-Jul
A report examined existing and future migration trends. In 2004, an estimated 223,000 more people migrated to the United Kingdom than moved abroad a net inflow much higher than the previous year. Although foreign workers in the UK had generally been more skilled than the domestic workforce, there were signs that this might be changing, probably due to the new immigration from East European countries.
Source: John Salt and Phil Rees, Globalisation, Population Mobility and Impact of Migration on Population, Economic and Social Research Council (01793 413000)
Links: Report | ESRC press release | Leeds University press release
Date: 2006-Jul
An article examined changing patterns of migration to Northern Ireland.
Source: Neil Jarman, 'Diversity, economy and policy: new patterns of migration to Northern Ireland', Shared Space, Issue 2, Community Relations Council (028 9022 7500)
Links: Article
Date: 2006-May
In 2004, an estimated 223,000 more people migrated to the United Kingdom than migrated abroad. This was 72,000 higher than 2003, and was the highest net in-migration since the existing method of estimation began in 1991.
Source: International Migration: Migrants entering or leaving the United Kingdom and England and Wales, 2004, Office for National Statistics (0845 601 3034)
Links: Report | ONS press release | Guardian report
Date: 2006-Apr