RECENT IMMIGRATION INTO BRITAIN
employment in regions such as the East of England and East Midlands (15 per cent each), with only 10 per cent in London in 2007. Scotland, Yorkshire and Humber, and the North-West, too, have attracted large numbers of Eastern Europeans. The NorthEast and Wales have received far lower numbers of new migrants. London, however, still attracts the largest number of migrants, as measured by applications for National Insurance numbers (NiNos), including self-employed Eastern Europeans not registered on the WRS. Maps 1.1 and 1.2 and Table 1.1 illustrate the current geography of largely labour immigration. Chapter 6 will look at the sectoral distribution in more detail. As the maps also show, there are areas of high concentration in relation to the population in rural areas in Lincolnshire (Boston and South Holland), Northern Ireland (Dungannon) and Scotland (Perth and Kinross), as well as London boroughs (Westminister and Camden). Table 1.1
Spatial distribution of A8/A2 migrants and foreign nationals
Percentages of A8/A2 nationals compared with other foreign nationals and UK nationals of working age by region, 2007 Government Office Region
A8/A2 National Insurance number applications 2006/7
WRS approvals 2004–7
A8/A2 nationals of working age arrived since 2004
Non A8/A2 foreign nationals of working age
UK nationals of working age
North-East
1.7
1.2
2.0
1.8
5.2
North-West
8.6
8.4
7.2
6.7
10.7
Yorkshire and Humber
7.3
8.2
6.9
5.5
8.6
East Midlands
8.1
10.3
11.1
4.4
7.3
8.0
8.5
7.6
7.5
8.8
9.1
12.0
4.8
3.2
3.7
London
21.8
15.4
21.4
40.9
11.1
South-East
11.2
13.4
17.1
17.3
19.3
South-West
7.4
7.6
8.4
4.2
8.5
Wales
2.9
2.9
3.8
2.2
5.1
Scotland
9.3
8.3
5.3
4.6
8.8
Northern Ireland
4.7
3.9
4.3
1.8
3.0
West Midlands East of England
Sources: Pollard et al, 2008, using Department for Work and Pensions (DWP), 2007, Home Office, 2008c, LFS and Institute for Public Policy Research (IPPR) calculations. Note: Some totals may not sum to 100 per cent due to rounding.
5