Migrant Workers: Cambridgeshire
Home Department
Written answers and statements, 22 February 2008
Malcolm Moss (North East Cambridgeshire, Conservative)
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what her most recent estimate is of the number of migrant workers there were in (a) Cambridgeshire, (b) Peterborough and (c) North East Cambridgeshire constituency in each of the last three years. [This section has been corrected on 3 March 2008, column 2MC — read correction]
Angela Eagle (Parliamentary Secretary, HM Treasury; Wallasey, Labour)
I have been asked to reply.
The information request falls within the responsibility of the National Statistician, who has been asked to reply.
Letter from Karen Dunnell, dated
As National Statistician, I have been asked to reply to your Parliamentary Question on what the most recent estimate is of the number of migrant workers in (a) Cambridgeshire, (b) Peterborough and (c) North East Cambridgeshire in each of the last three years. (187207)
The Office for National Statistics compiles statistics on migrant workers for local areas from the Annual Population Survey (APS). The National Statistics method for estimating the number of migrant workers employed in the UK is routinely based on the number of people at a given time who were born abroad, are of working age (16-64 for men, 16-59 for women), and in employment. This question has been answered on this basis. It means, for example, that some people who are UK nationals will be included in the total of "foreign born" and that people who are working but are above state pension age are not included.
APS estimates at this detailed level are only available consistent with population estimates published in February and March 2003 and are not comparable with the estimates published in the Labour Market Statistics First Release on
The table attached, shows the numbers of working age in employment who were not born in the UK and were resident in the county of Cambridgeshire, Peterborough UA and North East Cambridgeshire constituency, for the twelve month periods ending in June for 2005, 2006, 2007 from the APS. The July to June 2007 APS dataset is the most recent which is currently available. The table also shows the numbers of non-UK born persons as a percentage of all working age in employment, in these areas.
When interpreting these figures, it is important to bear in mind that the APS is not designed to cover everyone who is present in the UK. The survey may undercount the numbers of people who were born overseas. The reasons are set out in the table footnote.
As these estimates are for a subset of the population in small geographical areas, they are based on small sample sizes, and are therefore subject to large margins of uncertainty.
| Number of migrant workers in Cambridgeshire, Peterborough and North East Cambridgeshire in the last three years | ||||||
| Cambridgeshire | Peterborough | North East Cambridgeshire | ||||
| 12 months ending June each year | Employment l evel (thousand)( 1) | Non-UK born persons in employment as percentage of all in employment( 2) | Employment l evel (thousand)( 1) | Non-UK born persons in employment as percentage of all in employment( 2) | Employment l evel (thousand)( 1) | Non-UK born persons in employment as percentage of all in employment( 2) |
| 2005 | 19 | 6 | 5 | 7 | 2 | 4 |
| 2006 | 33 | 12 | 7 | 9 | 3 | 6 |
| 2007 | 41 | 15 | 12 | 16 | 4 | 9 |
| (1) Includes males aged 16 to 64 and females aged 16 to 59. (2) Denominator for percentage does not include respondents who did not answer the question on country of birth. Notes: 1. Estimates are subject to sampling variability. 2. It should also be noted that the country of birth question in the APS gives an undercount because: it excludes certain people who have been resident in the UK for less than six months. it excludes students in halls who do not have a UK resident parent. it excludes people in most other types of communal establishments (e.g. hotels, boarding houses, hostels, mobile home sites, etc.). it is grossed to population estimates which exclude migrants staying for less than 12 months. microdata are grossed to population estimates consistent with those published in spring 2003 which are significantly lower than the latest population estimates. Source: Annual Population Survey (APS), ONS | ||||||