People hailing from Albania have entered into the top ten most common ethnicities to give birth in Britain for the first time in recorded history.
Figures released this week by the Office for National Statistics (ONS) revealed that Albania jumped from 41st in 2012 to the tenth most common country of origin for mothers in Britain last year, with 3,260 babies born to Albanian mothers last year.
The staggering increase in the Albanian birth rate inside Britain has raised questions, given the relatively small population of around 50,000 in the UK.
Commenting on the figures, former home office minister Sir John Hayes told the Daily Mail: “It is peculiar that there should be so many babies born here to Albanian parents given the official statistics on their numbers.
“One is left asking if large numbers of Albanians are here illegally or if they are being granted visas by some other means, and if so why.”
Offering a possible explanation, Peter Walsh of the Migration Observatory at the University of Oxford said: “Available immigration data do not provide a clear explanation of why Albania has moved for the first time into the top ten most common countries of birth for migrant parents.
“Possible explanations for this include the ONS population estimate being too low [for example due to irregular migration or low response to government surveys], or that Albanians are more likely to be of childbearing age and hence have more children.”
The revelation comes just days after Reform UK leader Richard Tice uncovered an alleged “secret” document from the Home Office, revealing that nearly four in ten illegal migrants currently crossing the English Channel from France are from Albania, and not in fact from war-torn regions.
Albanians also have the distinction of being the single largest group of foreign nationals in British prisons, with approximately one in ten foreign prisoners hailing from Albania in 20202.
Reform leader Richard Tice said last week: “It is 30 times more likely that an Albanian would be imprisoned than the average UK citizen… I repeat that the vast majority of Albanians will be delightful, law-abiding people, but there is a major issue here.”
Meanwhile, the ONS reported that as a whole, 28.8 per cent of live births in 2021 in Britain were born to foreign mothers, a slight decrease from 29.3 per cent in 2020.
The fertility rate for UK-born mothers was still below replacement level at 1.54 children per woman, while the rate for foreign born mothers remained steady at 2.03 children per woman.
Pakistan maintained its position as the top country of origin for non-UK born fathers, while Romania became the most common country for non-UK born mothers, up from second place the year prior.
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