‘India and Pakistan top countries of birth for non-UK-born parents’

INDIA and Pakistan remained the most common countries of birth for non-UK born parents in England and Wales in 2023, according to new government data.

Last year, over 31 per cent of all live births were to mothers born outside the UK, up from 30.3 per cent the previous year, the latest data from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) revealed on Friday (8).

Also, more than 37 per cent of births were to parents where either one or both were born abroad, rising from 35.8 per cent in 2022.

The data showed that in 2023, 21,513 children were born to Indian mothers, up from 17,745 in 2022. The number of live births to Indian mothers who were not born in the UK was 15,260 in 2021. Meanwhile, non-UK-born Pakistani mothers gave 17,715 live births last year, compared to 16,654 births a year ago.

Other top countries of origin for non-UK-born mothers included Romania, Nigeria, Poland, and Bangladesh in 2023, the latest data revealed. Albania, Afghanistan, Ghana and the US have also found a place in the top 10.

According to the ONS, India and Pakistan have consistently occupied the top five spots when it comes to the country of origin for non-UK-born mothers over the past two decades (2003-2023).

In 2003, as many as 7,995 children were born to Indian mothers, with the country ranked third. More than 15,000 children were born to Pakistani mothers in the same year, ranking them first.

A decade later, in 2013, the number of live births to Indian mothers had almost doubled to 14,044, while the number of live births to Pakistani mothers had risen to 18,578.

Bangladesh also remained in the top list during this period (2003 to 2023). Bangladeshi mothers gave birth to 8,898 children in 2003, a figure that had decreased only slightly to 7,889 last year, indicating a non-drastic change.

The data further stated that the majority of Indian mothers were in the 30-34 age category when they gave birth, followed by the 25-29 years-of-age group. Meanwhile, the majority of the Pakistani mothers in 2023 gave birth when they were in the 25-29 age group, followed by 30-34 years-of-age. The age category is similar for Bangladeshi mothers.

As many as 98 Indian women gave birth to children when they were 45 years or more, compared to 53 Pakistani and 37 Bangladeshi women, respectively.

“Almost a third of babies born in 2023 in England and Wales were to non-UK born women, a slight increase on the percentage in 2022. This is a continuation of the long-term trend of the percentage of live births to non-UK-born mothers generally increasing," said Greg Ceely, head of population health monitoring, ONS.

“While our birth data show us the parents’ country of birth, it doesn’t give us a picture of the family’s ethnicity or migration history, and it’s worth noting that not all women born outside the UK will be recent immigrants.”

The data also highlighted stark regional variations. In London, over two-thirds of births (67.4 per cent) were to parents with at least one non-UK born parent. In contrast, the proportions were much lower in Wales (17.5 per cent) and northern England (20.5 per cent in the North East).

Across all regions, however, the share of births to parents born outside the UK has been steadily climbing in recent years.

The statistics also showed that older mothers were more likely to be born abroad, with over half (53.9 per cent) of births to women aged 45 and above having a non-UK born parent.