Number of EU citizens leaving U.K. rises, while arrival of foreign students falls

Net migration into Britain fell to 248,000 in 2016, led by a significant rise in the number of EU citizens leaving the U.K. and a fall in the international students arriving. While the fall will be welcomed by some, including the Conservative party, which in its manifesto maintains a commitment to lowering net migration to the tens of thousands, it will raise concerns among others about potential skill shortages in the U.K.

Brexit impact

Figures published by the Officer for National Statistics (ONS) on Thursday showed a statistically significant fall in net migration by 84,000 compared to 2015, driven by the number of EU citizens leaving Britain more than tripling. Some 43,000 citizens of so-called EU-8 nations, including Poland, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Hungary, Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania, left Britain during the year, while fewer numbers came to the country.

The figures are considered significant, highlighting the impact that last June’s referendum on leaving the EU is having on citizens of other European countries residing in Britain.

There was also a significant decrease in long-term immigration to study, which fell by 32,000 from 2015 to 136,000. The ONS noted that this was also driven by a decrease in students from Asia, whose numbers fell to 64,000 from 80,000 in 2015 (it does not break it down by country until later this year). However, separate data from the Home Office (which includes data on students on visas for less than a year) showed a slight increase in the number of visas issued to Indian students, whose numbers rose by 6% year-on-year to 11,642. Home Office data also showed that from outside the EU, the highest number of long-term visas were granted to Indian and Chinese nationals.

Emotive issue

The issue of immigration has emerged as a particularly emotive issue in Britain’s election campaigning. While the Conservatives have pledged to control and reduce immigration because high levels made it “difficult to build a cohesive society”, the Labour Party has promised “fair rules and reasonable management of migration”. The far-right UKIP party, which released its manifesto on Thursday, said it would target reducing net migration to zero. Among the major parties, it has fallen to the Liberal Democrats to commit to “making the positive case for immigration”.

Industry leaders and think tanks have expressed their concerns about immigration control in the U.K., particularly once it exits the European Union.

In April, Jaguar Land Rover’s CEO Ralf Speth highlighted the importance of access to a skilled international workforce in an interview with the BBC. Think tank Our Global Future published a report earlier this month noting the importance of immigration to the U.K. economy, estimating that an annual net migration figure “well in excess of 200,000” will be needed in the long term to avoid “catastrophic consequences for the economy”.