UK Covid-19 travel restrictions rein in post-Brexit migration levels
Migration “fell considerably” last year following Brexit, according to the latest figures, as emergency pandemic measures tightened borders and grounded flights.
Around 94,000 more European Union (EU) nationals left the UK than arrived last year, the Office for National Statistics (ONS) found.
While thousands left the UK behind for the bloc, centre for international migration director Jay Lindop said that there was “no evidence of an exodus from the UK”, after Britain exited the EU in January 2020.
“Global travel restrictions meant the movement of people was limited, with all data sources suggesting migration fell to the lowest level seen for many years,” Lindop explained.
“These are our best current estimates for international migration over this period, however they are modelled figures based on experimental research and subject to a high level of uncertainty.”
Though travel restrictions reigned this figure in, there have been speculative estimates that as many as 1.3m people born overseas left the UK to go and live elsewhere, an ONS spokesperson told City A.M.
“While all data sources suggest net migration fell to the lowest level seen for many years, our best estimates show more people still arrived in the UK than left,” the spokesperson added.