Indian students, workers among top leavers in UK's latest migration data
Figures released on Thursday by the Office for National Statistics (ONS) show that in 2024, around 37,000 Indians who arrived on study visas, 18,000 who came for work, and 3,000 who entered for other reasons, left the UK.
This was part of a broader emigration trend led by Indian nationals, followed by Chinese nationals at 45,000. (Representational image: iStock)
THE LATEST UK migration statistics show a significant number of Indian students and workers leaving the country over the past year, as tougher visa and immigration rules come into effect.
Figures released on Thursday by the Office for National Statistics (ONS) show that in 2024, around 37,000 Indians who arrived on study visas, 18,000 who came for work, and 3,000 who entered for other reasons, left the UK. This was part of a broader emigration trend led by Indian nationals, followed by Chinese nationals at 45,000.
Other major nationalities leaving the UK included Nigerians (16,000), Pakistanis (12,000) and Americans (8,000). The overall result was a fall in net migration by 431,000 last year – nearly half of what it was the year before.
“Among people emigrating, Indian was the most common nationality,” reads the ONS analysis, based on UK Home Office data.
“Study-related emigration was the most common reason for the five most frequent non-EU (European Union) nationalities to emigrate in YE (year-ending) December 2024. The increase in long-term emigration of non-EU+ nationals who originally arrived on study-related visas is primarily being driven by the large numbers of Indian and Chinese nationals leaving in YE December 2024,” it notes.
Mary Gregory, director of population statistics at the ONS, said the fall was mainly due to fewer people coming to the UK to work or study, especially student dependants.
“There has also been an increase in emigration over the 12 months to December 2024, especially people leaving who originally came on study visas once pandemic travel restrictions to the UK were eased,” she said.
The UK government welcomed the drop in net migration, an issue that has drawn attention amid political pressure and the recent rise of the anti-immigration Reform party.
“Under the Tories net migration reached nearly 1 million – roughly the size of the population of Birmingham. I know you are angry about this, and I promised you I would change it,” prime minister Keir Starmer said in a social media statement.
“Today's stats show we have nearly halved net migration in the last year. We're taking back control,” he said.
Experts say the drop is the biggest for any 12-month period on record and the most significant annual fall in net migration since the early days of the Covid pandemic.
“These figures show a big increase in returns of failed asylum seekers and foreign national offenders, record levels of illegal working penalties, and the asylum backlog and hotel use coming down,” said home secretary Yvette Cooper.
Long-term immigration to the UK dropped below 1 million for the first time in around three years. It was estimated at 948,000 in the year ending December 2024, down from 1,326,000 the year before.
At the same time, emigration rose by about 11 per cent to 517,000, up from 466,000 in the previous year.
Former home secretary James Cleverly, who served under the Conservative government led by Rishi Sunak, said the drop in net migration was due to policies he had introduced.
“This drop is because of the visa rule changes that I put in place,” he said.
Protesters from pro-choice group 'abortion rights' gather near parliament, where MPs were voting on the decriminalisation of abortion on June 17, 2025 in London. (Photo: Getty Images)
UK MPs have voted in favour of ending the prosecution of women in England and Wales for ending their own pregnancies, marking a significant step towards changing how abortion laws are applied.
Under current laws, women can face criminal charges if they terminate a pregnancy after 24 weeks or without the approval of two doctors. These laws still carry a maximum sentence of life imprisonment.
The vote follows public attention on the issue after recent court cases, including one where a woman was acquitted at trial and another who was released from prison on appeal.
On Tuesday, MPs backed an amendment by Labour MP Tonia Antoniazzi by a majority of 242. The amendment would ensure that women cannot be criminally prosecuted for ending their own pregnancies at any stage. However, it does not alter the existing abortion laws themselves.
The wider crime and policing bill must now go through a full parliamentary vote and then be passed by the House of Lords to become law.
Existing laws under scrutiny
“Women are currently being arrested from hospital bed to police cell and facing criminal investigations on suspicion of ending their own pregnancy,” Antoniazzi told AFP.
“My amendment would put a stop to this,” she said, calling it “the right amendment at the right time”.
In England and Wales, abortion remains a criminal offence under the Offences Against the Person Act of 1861, which still carries the potential for life imprisonment.
The Abortion Act of 1967 legalised terminations in certain circumstances, including up to 23 weeks and six days of pregnancy, when performed by authorised providers.
Abortions beyond that time are permitted only in limited situations, such as when the mother’s life is at risk or if there is a “substantial risk” the child may be born with a serious disability.
During the Covid-19 pandemic, the law was updated to allow women to take abortion pills at home up to 10 weeks into pregnancy.
Recent court cases
In May, Nicola Packer was acquitted after taking prescribed abortion medicine when she was about 26 weeks pregnant, beyond the legal limit for home use.
The 45-year-old told jurors during her trial — which followed a four-year police investigation — that she had not realised how far along her pregnancy was.
“It was horrendous giving evidence, absolutely awful,” she told The Guardian last month.
Concerns and support
The Society for the Protection of Unborn Children has described the proposed amendment as “the greatest threat to unborn babies in decades”.
Antoniazzi’s amendment does not change laws concerning how abortion services are provided or the time limits involved. Medical professionals who assist in abortions outside of legal provisions will still face prosecution.
Around 50 organisations, including abortion providers, medical bodies and women’s rights groups, support the amendment.
They note that six women in England have been taken to court in the past three years for ending or attempting to end their pregnancies outside legal frameworks.
Carla Foster was jailed in 2023 after taking abortion pills to end her pregnancy between 32 and 34 weeks. Her sentence was later suspended by the Court of Appeal.
Antoniazzi told the BBC that police had investigated “more than 100 women for suspected illegal abortion in the last five years including women who’ve suffered natural miscarriages and stillbirths”.
“This is just wrong. It's a waste of taxpayers money, it's a waste of the judiciary’s time, and it's not in the public interest,” she said.
Responding to the vote, prime minister Keir Starmer said on Tuesday that women have the right to a “safe and legal abortion”.
Northern Ireland decriminalised abortion for women in 2019. Scotland is currently reviewing its abortion laws.
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A FORMER Green Party health spokesperson has accused the party of shifting away from its core values and trying to silence members with gender-critical views.
Dr Pallavi Devulapalli, a general practitioner and local councillor in King’s Lynn and West Norfolk, was expelled from the Green Party this month. She claimed her removal was linked to her views on transgender rights, not to a rule violation as stated by the party. “They didn’t come out and say it was about gender. So they expelled me on a technicality,” she was quoted as saying.
Dr Devulapalli had been suspended since September after disagreeing with the party’s policy supporting gender self-identification during a public debate. She was later expelled for attending what she believed was a casual gathering but was ruled to be an official party event, which she was barred from attending due to her suspension, the Guardian reported.
“It feels like a purge,” she said. “The party is no longer about open debate or green politics. It’s becoming a leftwing authoritarian space. Say the wrong thing and you're out. That’s worrying.”
She is now part of a group calling themselves “Greens in Exile” – former members who say they were pushed out for holding gender-critical beliefs. Devulapalli argued the party’s stance on trans rights ignores biological facts and alienates everyday voters. She added, “Trans women are not women – this is about science and reality.”
Her removal has sparked debate within the party, especially as a new leadership election approaches. She believes if leadership hopeful Zack Polanski wins, more members will leave. “People are trying to bring back the Greens’ commitment to science and free speech,” she said.
Devulapalli says she has received strong support from within the party, including from former Green leaders and health spokespeople who have urged dialogue over division.
LONDON mayor Sadiq Khan has confirmed that Oxford Street will be pedestrianised “as quickly as possible” following strong backing in a public consultation. The move comes as part of wider efforts to revive the West End’s shopping appeal.
The consultation, which gathered over 6,600 responses from businesses, residents and organisations, showed two-thirds support for the mayor’s proposal to ban most traffic from a 0.7-mile stretch of Oxford Street, the Guardian reported. The plan includes space for outdoor cafés, events and improved public areas.
“Oxford Street has suffered over many years, so urgent action is needed to give our nation’s high street a new lease of life,” Khan was quoted as saying. “It’s clear that the vast majority of Londoners and major businesses back our exciting plans.”
The Labour government has agreed to back the creation of a mayoral development corporation (MDC) to drive the project forward. This comes after earlier efforts to pedestrianise the street were blocked by Westminster city council, which is now Labour-led but still cautious about the move.
Council leader Adam Hug said that while the mayor’s decision was not their preferred choice, they would now work together to help shape Oxford Street’s future. “Since 2022 the street has roared back to life after the pandemic,” he added.
Not everyone welcomed the plan. Black cab drivers warned of increased congestion on nearby streets. “Putting this traffic down surrounding streets will cause chaos,” said Steve McNamara of the LTDA.
Detailed plans for rerouting buses and banning traffic will be released later this year.
Retailers including Ikea and Selfridges expressed strong support. Ikea’s UK boss said the change would make the area more welcoming, while Selfridges described the project as “hugely energising”.
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Conference at Westminster Highlights Religious Persecution in Bangladesh and Baluchistan
A high-profile conference on religious freedom in Bangladesh and Baluchistan was held at Portcullis House, Westminster, organised by the Dharmic Ideas & Policy Foundation (DIPF), hosted by Bob Blackman MP (Harrow East), and supported by APPG leaders on Freedom of Religion and Belief (FoRB), including Richard James Shannon MP and Julie Jones on 9 June 2025.
Chairing the conference, Mr Blackman condemned the ongoing persecution of minorities in both regions, describing the situation as dire and deteriorating.
The keynote speaker, Mr Tathagata Roy—former Governor of Meghalaya and Tripura and author of My People Uprooted—outlined the historical roots of the crisis, tracing anti-Hindu violence from the 1943 Bengal famine and Noakhali riots through the genocides of 1950, 1962, and 1971. He highlighted the dramatic decline of Bangladesh’s Hindu population from 29% in 1947 to just 8% today, labelling the ongoing violence and displacement a "Hindu Holocaust".
Testimonies from Bangladeshi minorities Samir Das and his daughter Sudipta Das, as well as a lawyer recently arrived from Bangladesh, provided first-hand accounts of abductions, rape, and intimidation. All speakers pointed to the worsening conditions since the 2024 regime change.
Conference at Westminster Highlights Religious Persecution in Bangladesh and Baluchistan
Investigative journalist Francesca Marino, author of Baluchistan: Bruised, Battered and Bloodied, detailed Pakistan’s systemic oppression of the Baluchi people, including enforced disappearances, torture, and the use of rape as a weapon of control.
Dr Gautam Sen, formerly of the London School of Economics, concluded the session by underlining the civilisational assault on traditional cultures in both regions and the gendered violence used to dismantle them.
The conference closed with urgent policy recommendations:
UK and allied democracies to apply diplomatic pressure and sanctions on Pakistan and Bangladesh for human rights violations.
Support for Baluchi self-determination.
Economic and hydrological leverage by India, and implementation of the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) to aid displaced minorities.
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Protesters hold up placards during a march through central London on June 17, 2023, to call for decriminalisation of abortion. (Photo: Getty Images)
MPs are expected to vote on Tuesday on a proposed change to abortion laws in England and Wales that would prevent women from being prosecuted for ending their own pregnancies.
Under current law, women can face criminal charges for terminating a pregnancy beyond 24 weeks or without the approval of two doctors. The law still carries a maximum sentence of life imprisonment.
Recent court cases have drawn public attention to the issue. In one case, a woman was acquitted by a jury. In another, a woman was released from prison after an appeal.
Labour MP proposes amendment
Labour MP Tonia Antoniazzi has put forward an amendment to change the law. Her proposal seeks to ensure that no woman would be committing a criminal offence by ending her own pregnancy at any stage.
"Women are currently being arrested from hospital bed to police cell and facing criminal investigations on suspicion of ending their own pregnancy," Antoniazzi told AFP.
"My amendment would put a stop to this," she said, calling it "the right amendment at the right time".
Current law and its limits
Abortion remains a criminal offence under the Offences Against the Person Act, a law dating back to 1861. The Abortion Act 1967 allows terminations under certain conditions, including up to 23 weeks and six days if done by an authorised provider.
Abortions beyond that limit are allowed only in limited situations, such as if the mother's life is at risk or the baby is likely to be born with a serious disability.
A temporary update during the Covid-19 pandemic allowed women to take abortion pills at home for up to 10 weeks into a pregnancy.
In May, Nicola Packer was acquitted after taking prescribed abortion medicine when she was around 26 weeks pregnant. Her case followed a four-year police investigation. Packer told jurors she did not realise how far along her pregnancy was.
"It was horrendous giving evidence, absolutely awful," she told The Guardian last month.
Opposition to the proposal
The Society for the Protection of Unborn Children has criticised the amendment, calling it "the greatest threat to unborn babies in decades".
What the amendment would change
Antoniazzi's amendment does not seek to alter existing regulations around abortion services or time limits. It also does not change the law for anyone assisting a woman with an abortion outside legal provisions, such as medical practitioners, who would still face prosecution.
Around 50 organisations, including abortion providers, medical colleges and women's rights groups, have expressed support for the amendment.
They have pointed out that six women have appeared in court in England in the last three years, charged with ending or attempting to end their own pregnancies outside abortion law.
Carla Foster was jailed in 2023 after obtaining abortion tablets when she was 32 to 34 weeks pregnant. Her sentence was later suspended by the Court of Appeal.
Support from MPs across parties
Some 140 MPs in the 650-member parliament have publicly supported the proposed change.
It "has widespread support from MPs across the political spectrum and I am optimistic the Commons will support it," said Antoniazzi.
The vote will be a free vote, allowing MPs to vote based on personal views rather than party instructions.
Abortion was decriminalised in Northern Ireland in 2019. Scotland is currently reviewing its abortion laws.