Rise in migration ‘due to economic success and employment levels’

Nick Elvin

The latest Office for National Statistics (ONS) show net migration to the UK remains at record levels, standing at 336,000 in the year ending June 2015, 82,000 higher than the year before.

Continued economic growth and high levels of employment contributed to this trend, with work remaining the major reason for immigration to the UK, being cited by 294,000 or 46% of the 636,000 people who moved to the UK for at least a year.

Commenting on the figures, Madeleine Sumption, director of the Migration Observatory at the University of Oxford, said: “Most the measures introduced over the last parliament to reduce net migration of workers, students and family members have now been in place for some years. At this point, changes in net migration are mainly being driven by economic factors like the success of the UK economy, rather than by new policies.”

According to Gerwyn Davies, labour market adviser for the CIPD, the professional body for HR and people development, the latest ONS migration statistics highlight the role migrants play in helping address skills shortages in the UK labour market.

“The growing proportion of migrants coming to the UK who have a definite job to go to illustrates the valuable role migrant workers are playing in minimising skills shortages in a buoyant UK jobs market,” said Davies.

“CIPD research shows that the majority of employers looking to address recruitment difficulties by recruiting migrant workers are also investing in upskilling for their existing workforce and providing more job opportunities for young people. This has helped reduce skills shortages outside a limited number of sectors and also to contain wage inflation, factors which have helped to delay any decision to raise interest rates.”

But despite the benefits migrants bring to employers, Davies believes more needs to be done to help British workers gain the skills they need to compete in the jobs market.

“A competitive, flexible labour market is a key reason why businesses are able to access the talent and skills that they need. However, policy makers must recognise the need to close the gap between education and work to ensure that British workers are equipped with the skills that will enable them to compete for jobs on a level playing field. We also need to rebalance our labour market, to reduce the large proportion of low-skilled jobs in the UK by international standards, and to invest in skills so more people can get into and on at work.”