Scotland’s population is rising “faster than at any time since the 1940s” according to the National Records of Scotland.
In new research released on Tuesday, the non-ministerial department of the Scottish Government stated that the country’s population in the year to mid-2023 grew by 43,100 to 5,490,100 from the previous year. This marks a 0.8 per cent increase, which is the largest jump in one year since 1947.
According to the National Records of Scotland, a major factor is the increase in the number of people moving to the country. While inward migration dropped slightly compared to the previous 12 months, there was a larger fall in outward migration.
Head of Demographic Statistics Esther Roughsedge commented: “The main driver of population growth over the year was people moving to Scotland from abroad and other parts of the UK.
“Almost two-thirds of people moving to Scotland came from outside the UK. We also saw a fall in the number of people leaving Scotland.
“Without migration into Scotland, the population would have fallen.
“Deaths outnumbered births by the highest amount on record. There were 19,100 more deaths than births.”
That National Records of Scotland states that the country’s cities saw the most growth from mid-2022 to mid-2023, with the populations of Edinburgh and Glasgow increasing by 1.7 per cent and 1.6 per cent respectively. Aberdeen also saw its population rise by 1.6 per cent.
On the other hand, the population of Na h-Eileanan Siar saw the biggest decrease between 2022 and 2023. The Scottish Borders, Argyll and Bute, the Orkney Islands, the Shetland Islands, Dumfries and Galloway, and Inverclyde also experienced population drops.
Meanwhile, the data from the National Records of Scotland also revealed that the country’s population is growing older. It shows that more than a fifth of people living in Scotland are aged 65 or older, while 16 per cent are 15 or younger.
More information can be found on the National Records of Scotland website.
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