Britain’s population predicted to overtake France’s by 2030 due to high levels of immigration – unless Brexit stops it
The current numbers of arrivals will see the UK become Europe’s most populous country by 2050
BRITAIN’S population is predicted to overtake France's within 13 years due to high levels of immigration.
The figures from Eurostat show that the current number of arrivals would also make the UK Europe’s most populous country by 2050, but they do not take into account of Brexit.
Our withdrawal from the EU could drastically alter that course, as the British Government may get the right to control immigration from the continent, which accounts for half of those who come here.
This is the key reason behind the Luxembourg-based EU statistics arm’s prediction Britain’s population will rise so quickly compared to that of neighbouring countries.
Without immigration the number of people living in the UK would remain lower than France’s for at least 50 years.
Eurostat’s most recent estimates were released yesterday, putting Britain’s population at the beginning of 2015 at 64,643,370, with France at 66,175,754 and Germany 80,709,056.
Its projections for 20103 would see Britain up to 70,469,762, ahead of France on 70,396,105, a country two and a half times as large.
The landmass of the UK is 242,495 square kilometres, whilst France is a whopping 643, 801.
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On current population levels Britain already has virtually the highest density of any European country at 255 people per square kilometre, while France is less than half of that 116.
Only the Netherlands and Malta have more people crammed in than the UK, and southern England, where there are 465 people to every square kilometre, it is on track to overtake Holland.
But Germany, despite having very high levels of net migration, has an ageing population so will actually see its numbers fall.
The figures suggest this could see Britain overtake it as the most populous European country by 2050, with 77,177,523 to Germany’s 74,721,315.
Eurostat’s estimates say net migration into the UK is expected to peak at just under 210,000 a year in 2014.
But the UK’s own statistics body, the ONS, measured it at 335,000 in the year to June 2016.