New analysis by the Centre for Policy Studies of revised ONS population data, released this week, highlights the extent to which earlier population figures understated recent demographic change in the United Kingdom.
The revised long term international migration data published by the ONS shows that the country experienced faster population growth and greater churn between 2021 and 2024 than was previously recognised – on a scale that it is hard to find a historical equivalent for.
The updated estimates indicate that around one in 25 people currently living in the United Kingdom arrived during this period, and that the foreign-born population is now close to 20%. These changes were not fully captured in earlier statistics, which relied on outdated data sources.
One of the clearest examples concerns emigration: the previous ONS series had suggested that around 343,000 British nationals left the country between 2021 and 2024, whereas the revised data puts the true figure at 992,000, around 190 per cent higher than thought, and an average of 679 people leaving each day.
A data specialist with a background in energy and seaborne trade research in the City, his work at the CPS has focused on political economy, immigration policy and the intellectual foundations of free market conservatism - as well as content of the Thatcher Fellowship programme.
