The Empire Where the Sun Never Sets

The United Kingdom, once it held the seat of a global empire. The union of England, Wales, Scotland and Northern-Ireland was a multicultural union in its own right. Regardless, most of of the Irish remained in Ireland. Most of the Welsh remained in Wales, and most of the Scottish remained in Scotland. England was by far a majority of English people.

All elements of the union thus kept their distinct cultures, and even today Scotland has a different feel to it than England. This is changing though. Parts of England no longer feel very English at all. It is a trend that started after World War II and has only become more apparent in recent years.

Tit-for-Tat

There was a point in time where the inhabitants of the United Kingdom spread across the globe. The United States, Canada, Australia, New Zealand and even South Africa. All of these nations were shaped by settlers that left their rainy island for a brighter future. Now, those from across the world are leaving their tropical countries to find prosperity in the United Kingdom. You might say that it is a tit-for-tat scenario. The British did it in the past, so now it is only fair that they are on the other side of the deal. Yet, what will happen to the demography of the United Kingdom?

Moreover, if acting ‘fair’ means the British losing control of their homeland, should they really wish to have it fair? Throughout history, everyone conquered and was conquered. It seems insane to try to set the record straight and balance it out. The British, after all, have been conquered by the Anglo-Saxon tribes from Germany, the Normans from Scandinavia and the French have made their attempts.

The Demography Today

The United Kingdom has around 65 million inhabitants. Their headcount is actually lower than that of France, or of Germany. Out of these 65, almost 55 million live in England. Just over 5 million are in Scotland. Only 3 million in Wales, and not even 2 million in Northern Ireland.

What is the demographic split between these 65 million when we look at ethnicity? Close to 90% of them, or 87% to be more precise, is classified as white. The data is from 2011, so there will have been some changes since as there was a large influx of migrants over the last years. Yet, despite being slightly outdated, it gives us a decent overview.

The next largest ethnic group is African/Black, making up 3%. Indian, Pakistani and Bangladeshi combined form close to 5% of the total population. Do take note that the biggest group is simply called ‘White’ and not ‘White British’. This means that it does include all Europeans that moved to the United Kingdom under the free migrations laws of the European Union.

Native born versus Foreign born

The chart below shows the percentage of UK-native born versus those born outside of the UK. Note that this does not say anything about their ethnicity. An ethnic Chinese might have been born in the UK, while an ethnic White might have been born outside of the UK.

What we see in this graph is that in 1951 already 4.3% of the UK population had been born abroad. We can see this percentage rise and rise, reaching 13.4% already in 2011. Of course, those that had moved to the UK from abroad during the 50’s, 60’s and 70’s, will have had children that show up as ‘native born’ in the 90’s, 00’s and so on. Thus, the percentage of native born says nothing about who would be ‘White British’. Nor does it say anything about those who feel culturally a part of England, or who have adapted to the British culture.

A big rise in migration since 2001 is undoubtedly the influx of East-Europeans that were allowed entry due to being members of the EU. Additionally, the non-UK born include American, Canadian or Australian descendants from British settlers that have now returned to the UK. Some right-wing fanatics like to believe that the United Kingdom is already overrun by those of Indian ancestry, and that that 13.4% would be all Asian migrants. That, of course, is utter nonsense and it makes them lose credibility among those that observe reality. Again, in 2011 still 87% of Britain was considered white.

The Future of the Britons

The UN predicts that the population will grow to 69 million by 2050. For that to happen, over four million need to migrate to the United Kingdom over the upcoming decades. Why do they need to be migrants? Because the UK’s fertility rate is below the replacement level. With a rate of 1.8, they are below the replacement level of 2.1. The UK’s population would shrink without migration. Another 6% of the population will be immigrants during the upcoming years, primarily from Asia and Africa, to total these four million.

The Oxford Migration Observatory has also determined some demographic trends for the United Kingdom. According to Professor David Coleman claims that white Britons would become a minority in their own country before 2070. More exactly the year is pinpointed at 2066. We do wish to highlight that the white Britons excludes other European peoples. However, that does not make the conclusion any less severe.

In the book ”Why I no longer talk to white people about race” the research by Coleman is also quoted. The research is not questioned or debunked, it is accepted as fact. The book’s only question is ‘So what?’ For anyone that values British culture, that rhetorical questions appears as ignorant and confrontational. Of course, British culture is subdivided in English culture, Scottish culture, Welsh culture and Irish culture. Perhaps the Scottish, Welsh and Irish will maintain their cultures for a while longer as migration is concentrated in England. But English culture, which Kate Fox authored a best-selling book about, may be pushed away into the countryside and Cornwall. It will be replaced by the culture of the newcomers.

Islam in the United Kingdom

By 2050, according to Pew Research, Islam in the United Kingdom will have increased to between 9.7% to 17.2%, depending on the level of migration. The lowest is zero migration, the highest is current levels of high migration. Currently it stands at 6.3%. Although the average Briton has a fertility rate of 1.8, that of Muslims in the United Kingdom stands at 2.9. Over a child more per woman. Nearly three children on average for every Muslim woman in the United Kingdom. That is why the percentage of Muslims will grow rapidly even with zero migration.

In numbers, rather than percentages, this increase could take the United Kingdom for 4 million to 13 million. Between 2010 and 2016, 43% of all migrants entering the United Kingdom were Muslims. The remainder like either Hindus from India, or Christians from Eastern Europe.

London

Not only do most live in England, but London is by far the biggest city. Almost 9 million people live in London, with the next biggest city being Birmingham. Birmingham, however, has only just over 1 million citizens. Hardly surprising, London is the biggest city in the European Union, followed by Berlin with only half the population of London on the second place.

Coleman predicted that long before 2066 the white Britons would be the minority in the younger age groups, and in the urban areas. London may be one example, but Birmingham and other large cities are similar. Already in 2013 the white Britons became a minority in London, making up a mere 45% of the inhabitants of the great city. London is only a few decades ahead of the rest of England.

Conclusion

It is clear for anyone to see that the United Kingdom is experiencing severe demographic changes. The political climate in the country has made this topic completely impossible to discuss. Ever since Enoch Powell had his speech titled ‘Rivers of Blood‘, the topic of demographic changes is immediately linked to racist views. The speech marked the end of Powell’s political career.

Perhaps the Brexit vote shows that the English people are in fact fed up with the way they are being governed. After all, nobody ever asked them if this is what they wanted. To end the demographic shift, they will need more than a Brexit. They would need drastic changes in government, a thing that seems highly unlikely in today’s Britain.

Today, 37% of the British say they don’t feel at home in their country due to the migrants. Hardly a surprise when you can walk through entire neighborhoods without hearing English being spoken.