Commenting, Lord Green of Deddington, Chairman of Migration Watch UK, said:
These figures are a serious disappointment. At a third of a million, they show that no progress is being made in reducing immigration. Virtually half of it now comes from the EU and there is no reason to think that this will fall.
Our recent study suggests that East European migration has been undercounted by 50,000 a year. If we are right, and nobody has challenged us, net migration is actually running at nearly 400,000 a year.
The effect on housing and public services will be enormous unless and until there is decisive action to bring these numbers down.
To see the ONS release, click here.
To see our recent study on ‘National Insurance Numbers and immigration figures for Eastern Europeans’, click here.