Outrage as It’s Revealed How Much Jobless Migrants and Foreign Students Really Cost UK

A new report has revealed that the UK taxpayer has forked out almost £24billion on jobless legal migrants who contribute nothing to the economy since 2020.

The number does not include international students who are discounted from the “economically inactive” category but if they were added the total cost would be an eye-watering £36billion.

The findings will fuel concerns that the UK’s porous legal migration is being used for so-called benefits tourism with millions arriving and claiming housing benefit, Universal Credit, child benefit and other handouts including the use of the NHS and schools without contributing to the country.

The shocking figures have raised into question claims from the Treasury and some economists that mass migration is needed to grow the British economy.

The findings have come in a report by the Centre for Migration Control based on the latest data published last week by the Office for National Statistics (ONS).

Robert Bates, Research Director at the Centre for Migration Control said: “These findings show that mass migration is far from the economic panacea that the advocates of open borders purport it to be.

“The UK is now in a recession and GDP per capita has plummeted through the floorboards. Our policymakers need to shed the illusion that, somehow, another year of net migration running in the hundreds of thousands will turn the ship around.”

He went on: “We have had twenty years of limitless migration, and those with legitimate concerns were simply told that it is an economic necessity.

“But the fact is that there are now over a million migrants who are making no economic contribution to the UK coffers and are in fact imposing a net drain.

“The very minimum that we should expect from those being welcomed to the UK is that they should being rolling their sleeves up and getting stuck into work, but even that does not seem to be the case.”

Dame Andrea Jenkyns says the report shows mass immigration does not boost GDP (Image: Getty)
In the last two years the UK has seen the last two figures for net migration equal around 1.4 million in the last two years.

Recent new measures to toughen up the immigration system suggest that overall figures will drop by 300,000 a year, but this will mean that net migration will still stand at about 400,000 annually.

Economic Inactivity is defined by the ONS as “people not in employment who have not been seeking work within the last 4 weeks and/or are unable to start work within the next 2 weeks.”

On Tuesday the ONS released the latest data from its Labour Force Survey, which showed that between October and December 2023 there were 724,000 non-UK individuals aged 16-64 that were classed as economically inactive.

Analysis of the Labour Force Survey by the Centre for Migration Control has found that in 2020 there were 623,500 economically inactive migrants; 2021 623,250; 2022 740,000 and last year 2023 711,500.

This means there has been an increase of 16% in the number of economically inactive migrants being subsidised by the taxpayer in the last five years.

If international students were included the totals would rise to 909,771 in 2020; 925,564 in 2021; 1,100,229 in 2022; and 1,135,949 in 2023.

The calculations of cost were based on the figures for core provisions per person provided which ranging from £8,082 to £9,168 depending on the year.

This means that the total without students was, according to the Centre, £23.74billion without students and £35.84 billion including students.

Tory MPs who have been demanding much tougher controls on legal migration and demanded that the numbers are enormously reduced have reacted with anger to the findings.

Dame Andrea Jenkyns said: “This demonstrates that the financial costs far outweigh the benefits or the arguments that mass migration grows the economy.

“The British people are struggling to pay their bills and we are wasting taxpayers money on this!

“If we don’t get a grip this can lose the Conservatives the election, and we know that under a Labour government we would see more open borders and much higher levels of migration.”

Dudley North MP Marco Longhi added: “The data completely contradicts the notion put forward by those who argue that mass immigration is a good thing – including by those who foolishly promote it as a way to increase GDP.

“We are poorer as a country as a result of mass migration if we look at GDP per capita. Last month our economy contracted by 0.3% – how did mass immigration help there?

“But clearly it isn’t just about GDP: it’s about providing housing, welfare and other public services for immigrants who remain inactive.

“To those who say we need more for the NHS and business, I say let’s invest in our own: more training, skills and better wages. It would be far cheaper in the long run than this ridiculous addiction and sticking plaster approach that immigration is.”

Lee Anderson said: “My in laws are Irish migrants who came to this country over 50 years ago. They have worked all their lives and made a massive contribution to our great country. They have paid their way and not been a drain on our finances. That’s how it should be.”

Tom Hunt, deputy chairman of the Common Sense Group of Tory MPs which was set up tp push for immigration controls, said: “The only real issue we should consider when it comes to people moving here is whether or not they’re going to make positive contribution to the country.

“This data indicates that too many people have got into our country and simply been a drain on the public purse.

“Some of the changes made by the Government over the past few months will hopefully make a difference to this but the likelihood is that we’ll need to go even further.”