New figures show Cameron’s net migration target in tatters

Today’s news that lots of people want to come and work in a free, welcoming country with many opportunities and a growing economy is actually very bad news. Not for the economy, or those people, or probably the country, but for the politicians who thought it would be sensible to pledge that by the 2015 election, net migration would be in the ‘tens of thousands’. Today the Office for National Statistics reveals that net long-term migration to the UK was estimated to be 298,000 in the year to September 2014, up from 210,000 in the previous 12 months. Overall 624,000 people immigrated to the UK in the year ending September 2014. Net migration of 298,000 is not squeaking close to the target of tens of thousands. It’s as much of a wide as if a bowler had come steaming up to the crease, then aimed his delivery at deep extra-cover.

So why are the numbers so high? Both immigration of non-EU citizens and EU citizens were up, by 49,000 and 43,000 respectively, so it is difficult for Cameron to say that he only missed the target because you cannot control EU migration.