The Office for National Statistics (ONS) said 404,000 people from outside the European Union moved to the UK in 2019. Only 122,000 left, giving a net inflow of 282,000 people.
More Europeans also arrived than left, with 196,000 EU arrivals during 2019 against 147,000 going home, giving a net inflow of 49,000, despite fears of an exodus after the Brexit vote.
The combination of inflows from Europe and other parts of the world and an outflow of 60,000 Britons meant that overall net migration stood at 270,000 during 2019. The ONS said that was broadly “stable” in comparison to recent years, although it remains high by historic standards.
But the key trend was a decline in immigration for work and a rise in those arriving to study —some 120,000 from China and 49,000 from India.
The overall number of non-Europeans coming to study at British universities last year was the highest on record.
Today’s statistics also contain less encouraging figures on the number of Europeans arriving to work, which fell to 76,000 last year, the lowest total since 2004, when countries such as Poland, Latvia, Lithuania and other eastern European nations joined the EU.
Announcing the figures today, Jay Lindop from the ONS said: “Overall migration levels have remained broadly stable in recent years, but new patterns have emerged for EU and non-EU migrants since 2016.
“For the year ending December 2019, non-EU migration was at the highest level we have seen.”
Meanwhile, the charity Refugee Action said that other figures contained with today’s migration data showed a 13 per cent rise in the number of asylum-seekers waiting more than six months for a decision on their claim.
The charity said that meant there were more than 31,000 applicants and dependants in this position and that rules barring them from working should be lifted both for their benefit and for that of the country.
