Britain’s population set to rise by 5 million in decade

ONS figures pile pressure on government to curb migration E ree

- ALEXANDER BUTLER MILLIE COOKE

The UK population is set to soar by nearly 5 million over the course of a decade almost entirely because of net migration, according to new figures from the Office for National Statistics (ONS). The population is projected to reach 72.5 million by mid 2032, up from 67.6 million in mid-2022, piling more pressure on the government to curb the number of people coming to the UK.

The figures also project that the number of over-85s will double to 3.3 million over the next two decades, with campaigners warning that the social care sector is “nowhere near ready” for the demands such an increase will put on the system. It comes amid ongoing concern about the public finances, with further spending cuts expected to be on the way as rises in borrowing costs threaten chancellor Rachel Reeves’s economic plans.

Responding to the projected population growth, the Tories called for a binding legal cap on the number of visas issued each year, with shadow home secretary Chris Philp saying that the “shocking and unacceptable projection can and must be stopped from materialising”.

While Downing Street rejected Mr Philp’s call to bring in a legally binding cap, a spokesperson said the projections “underline the need to act to bring down net migration substantially”. “The prime minister doesn’t think that setting an arbitrary cap [as] previous governments have done is the way forward,” the spokesperson said. “That’s why we’re putting in place the policies that will actually deliver that.”