NET migration to the UK has fallen to its lowest level in more than two years after a jump in the number of eastern Europeans leaving the country, according to new figures.
The difference between the numbers of people arriving and leaving the country was estimated at 273,000 in the year to the end of September — a fall of 49,000 on the previous 12 months and the lowest level since year ending June 2014.
It was also the first time in two years that net migration has dipped below 300,000.
It was also revealed that, for the first time, both immigration and net migration from the EU were higher than that for the rest of the world.
The figures are the first to include several weeks after the EU referendum in June, but the net total remains well above the UK Government’s aim of fewer than 100,000.
Meanwhile, the number of Syrian refugees brought to the UK under the Government’s resettlement scheme has passed 5,000 for the first time. Home Office statistics show 1,292 people arrived under the initiative in the final three months of last year, taking the total since it was expanded to 5,454.
In 2015, ministers committed to take in 20,000 Syrians driven from the war-torn country by 2020, following a public outcry over the fate of those attempting the treacherous journey across the Mediterranean. The latest figures show around half of those given sanctuary under the programme are children.
There has been a rise in the number of councils taking part in the scheme, with refugees now being housed by more than 200 local authorities across the UK.
Immigration Minister Robert Goodwill said: “The hard work will continue throughout this Parliament, as we work with local authorities to provide those who have been displaced by conflict with a safe environment and the opportunity to rebuild their lives.”
Last year, a Commons committee report warned of a “two-tier system” in relation to the voluntary programme, after figures showed some councils had taken in dozens while others had received none.
Spending watchdogs have estimated the total cost of the scheme could top £1.7 billion.
In an assessment last September, the National Audit Office also warned of a shortage of housing and school places.
The latest figures come after the Government faced criticism over the decision to close the Dubs scheme for lone child refugees in Europe.
It was named after Lord Alf Dubs, who was rescued from Nazi-occupied Czechoslovakia in 1939, and lobbied for an initiative to take in children stranded in camps across Europe.
Stephen Hale, chief executive of Refugee Action, said: “We’re proud that Britain is resettling more refugees than it has in more than three decades, with communities all around the country choosing to welcome refugees to their areas.”
He called on the Government to reopen the Dubs scheme, saying it was “vital” that Britain “steps up and increases our commitment to those forced to flee war, persecution and terror”.
The Office for National (ONS) figures showed a “statistically significant” rise in emigration of citizens from so-called EU8 nations — Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Slovakia and Slovenia.
The outflow of EU8 nationals was up 12,000 year-on-year to 39,000 — the highest for five years.
Seamus Nevin, head of employment and skills at the Institute of Directors, said the figures “provide the first signs of the effect on immigration since Britain voted for Brexit”.
He said: “Signs that EU nationals are starting to leave because of the climate of uncertainty are worrying for employers and businesses.”
Madeleine Sumption, director of the Migration Observatory at the University of Oxford, said it was “too early to tell whether the net migration data represent the beginning of a downward post-referendum trend”.
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