GETTY•EXPRESS The foreign-born population is expected to rise to five million in 2031

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Vast swathes of the city are home to different pockets of nationalities from across the globe, according to official statistics. The population of London now stands at more than 8.6 million - an increase of around 113,000 over each of the last five years. The record population is 12 per cent higher than the previous decade as is set to soar to 10 million by 2034.

It is expected the foreign-born population will rise to more than five million in 2031 based on predictions from the 2011 census. The figures show the booming number of people living in the capital is down to the influx in foreign-born immigrants rather than UK citizens moving in. There are fears that if the population continues to rocket unchecked it could put an unbearable strain on hospitals, schools, housing and transport infrastructure.

EXPRESS This map shows the most common birth country in each of London's boroughs

Residents originally from India dominate ten of the capital’s 32 boroughs while Londoners born in Nigeria, Poland, Turkey and Bangladesh have the highest numbers in at least three areas each. In some areas including Westminster, Kensington and Chelsea and Brent more than half the population was born abroad, according to figures from the Mayor of London’s Data Store. Brent and Haringey have the highest proportion of foreign-born residents at around 54 per cent, followed by Kensington and Chelsea and Westminster, on just over 50 per cent. Last night Ukip’s London Mayoral candidate Peter Whittle said: “The level of international migration into London over the past fifteen years is historically without precedent.

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“The strain this has put on our social services, our health service and schools is plan for all to see. It is also the main driver behind the housing crisis in the capital. “It’s no wonder then that a recent poll showed housing and immigration to be the top two concerns for Londoners.” The population of London is at its peak since the previous record, in 1939, before the devastation of the Second World War. In the aftermath more than 2.2 million Londoners left for a new life in surrounding counties or the suburbs over the next 50 years. Statistics show London’s inner boroughs have a far higher immigrant population than its outer boroughs.

GETTY The largest population born outside Britain are from India

GETTY The booming numbers are because of foreign-born immigrants moving in, figures show

There is a trend of people of certain nationalities moving to boroughs already heavily-populated by their fellow countrymen. The largest population born outside Britain come from India - around 290,000 according to latest figures. Around 178,000 were born in Poland, 134,000 in Pakistan and 109,000 in Bangladesh. Next comes Ireland with around 100,000, 96,000 from Nigeria, 84,000 from Romania and 83,000 from Sri Lanka. The latest figures show London’s population includes 79,000 people born in Italy and 76,000 from Somalia. The immigrant population of the capital more than doubled from one million in 1971 to three million in 2011, when the last census was carried out.

Of the total three million non-British residents 40 per cent were from Europe, 30 per cent from the Middle East and Asia, 20 per cent from Africa and 10 per cent from America or the Caribbean. While the city’s immigrant population will continue to rise sharply in the coming decades, the number of British-born people will continue to slowly decline. In 1971 this figure was at more than six million but this is likely to sink below five million in the coming decades.