Migration to Britain is falling

By THE DATA TEAM

BRITAIN’S latest net migration figures (immigration minus emigration) suggest that the country’s vote to leave the European Union is taking a toll. The net migration number for the year to March 2017 was 246,000, down by 81,000 compared with a year ago. That is probably a result of far fewer migrants arriving on Britain's shores from eastern Europe, a trend that is also reflected in a 21% decline in the number of National Insurance numbers issued to eastern Europeans since last summer. The falling value of the pound, slowing growth and the country's apparent hostility to foreigners may explain Britain's declining appeal. But net migration figures should be taken with a pinch of salt. They are based on a tourism survey that began in the 1960s and are surprisingly unreliable. That has done little to lessen their political power, however.