Current status: Answered by Neil Gray on 16 November 2022
To ask the Scottish Government what information it has on the proportion of net inward migration to the UK that settled in Scotland in each of the last 10 years, and what steps it is taking to grow this relative proportion in future years.
Based on NRS and ONS data, the number of international migrants who have settled in Scotland in the last 10 years, and comparative UK data, is:
Scotland | UK | |
mid-2012 | 35,900 | 517,754 |
mid-2013 | 28,200 | 503,723 |
mid-2014 | 33,200 | 582,621 |
mid-2015 | 37,800 | 636,277 |
mid-2016 | 40,400 | 649,550 |
mid-2017 | 32,900 | 571,515 |
mid-2018 | 32,900 | 625,927 |
mid-2019 | 39,900 | 609,308 |
mid-2020* | 39,200 | 741,000 |
mid-2021* | 41,000 | 573,000 |
*Figures are provisional.
In this year’s Programme for Government, in support of delivering the Population Strategy’s “Attractive and Welcoming Country” pillar, the Scottish Government has committed to launching a Talent Attraction and Migration Service to attract people to come and live in Scotland, help those moving to Scotland settle into communities, and support employers to navigate the immigration system. Service design is ongoing to ensure it achieves these outcomes and the service will launch during 2023.