The British Isles greatest export....

UK migration trends have been remarkably stable over the last decade.

Apart from a little dip in 2008, the financial crisis has had little impact on flows. Contrary to widespread and alarmist predictions, our friendly Polish plumbers have not returned to fix the dilapidated piping in Warsaw.

The numbers tell a straightforward story;

• Every year around 500,000 people migrate to the UK:
• At the same time, over 300,000 people leave:
• The net population increase is somewhere between 150,000 to 200,000 a year.

For me, the most fascinating number is the exit rate.  It is not often acknowledged, but over the last 300 years, the British Isles has been the greatest source of migrants in the world. 

People have been, by far, the greatest export from these fair isles.