Just one week ahead of David Cameron’s trade visit to China, the Office for National Statistics confirmed that, for the first time, Chinese citizens account for the largest group of migrants to the UK, with 40,000 coming to Britain in 2012 compared with 29,000 in 2010.
China’s rise to top spot is partly because of India’s sharp decline – caused by steep falls in the number of Indian students coming to the UK to study. While Indian arrivals topped 60,000 in 2011 and 65,000 in 2010, the number has now fallen to 37,000 after a clampdown on student visas and Home Office rhetoric about cutting immigration from outside the EU.
The latest statistics show the number of visas being granted to Indian students has fallen 24 per cent.