UK Economy - What has been happening to labour migration?

Labour migration is a really important topic because changes in the net flow of people into and out of a country's labour market can have both demand and supply-side effects. Nearly two years since leaving the single market of the European Union, this video short takes a look at the long-run data for UK labour migration and highlights an interesting change in Australian migrant caps that has been announced recently.

For most of the last thirty years, there has been consistent net inward migration of people into the UK labour market. This flow increased in the early part of the new century with the entry of 12 new countries into the European Union – which allows free movement of labour.

The UK left the EU single market at the end of 2020.

Since 2021, most workers must be paid > £25,600 a year for an employer to sponsor a visa

Seasonal workers can come in with a temporary visa

Non-EU migration has grown