Three-quarters of Northern Irish population growth down to immigration says Office for National Statistics
Three-quarters of Northern Ireland's population growth last year was down to immigration, new official figures reveal.
The annual population estimates for the UK were released on Tuesday by the Office for National Statistics showing the level of births, deaths, and immigration/emigration as of June 30, 2023.
It reveals that Northern Ireland's population continued to creep towards the two million mark, growing by 9,994 on the previous year to 1.92 million (or 1,920,382 to be exact).
The vast bulk of that growth – 7,562 – was the result of what the data tables call "international immigration".
However, it is not clear if this figure includes people going to and from the Republic of Ireland.
Here's how the figures break down.
In the year to June 30, 2023, there had been:
- 20,072 births and 17,601 deaths in Northern Ireland, resulting in a net gain of 2,471 people.
- An "international migration inflow" of 18,797;
- And an "international migration outflow" of 11,235, making for a net gain of 7,562 people.
One of the notable things about the figures is that Northern Ireland is the only part of the UK where the population grew to any noticeable degree due to births alone.
By comparison, in England and Wales the number of births minus deaths stood at a mere 401 people, whilst in Scotland it stood at minus 19,144.
Overall, the number of people dying in the UK outstripped the number being born by 16,272.
However, the UK population as a whole grew by 662,448 to 68.27 million during the year.
That's because the international migration inflow for the year was 1.19 million, and the outflow was 508,322.
In other words, the annual population growth for the UK as a whole – working out at an increase of about 1% – was down entirely to immigration.