According to data released by the National Statistics Office on Thursday (24), 1.1 million people immigrated to the UK in the 12 months to June this year, mainly international students, humanitarian visa holders and family members, while the net immigrant population reached 504,000, a new high.
Figures show that around 704,000 people who immigrated to the UK during the aforementioned period were from non-EU regions, and 560,000 people moved out of the UK during the same period, with nearly half returning to the EU. International students were the main source of immigration, accounting for 277,000 people, almost double the previous year. The second largest number are humanitarian visas and other family visas, about 276,000 people, including 89,000 from Ukraine, 76,000 from Hong Kong and 21,000 from Afghanistan. In addition, the number of refugee asylum applications in the UK is the highest in 32 years and nearly 100,000 people have waited 6 months for initial applications.
The prime minister’s office said it is studying options to reduce the number of international students and will consider all options to ensure the immigration system is effective. Related issues include international student employees and low-quality educational qualifications . Home Secretary Pavman said the current number of immigrants had put pressure on public services such as housing, healthcare and education in the UK. The government is still determined to reduce immigration. The top priority is to resolve the illegal border crossings and stop abusing the immigration system and to rebuild public control of the British border by the Confidence government.
