Net migration could be much higher than thought

Net migration could be as much as 50,000 higher than estimated because thousands of foreign migrants may not have left the UK, official figures suggest. The Office for National Statistics (ONS) has admitted that it “assumes” that more than 50,000 non-EU and EU migrants have left the UK at the end of their visas, even though it does not have accurate data to confirm their departures. Its own research has found some of these people “might still be in the UK” and this means that its current method for calculating net migration “would incorrectly emigrate them”. Some of these could...