Councils warn of ‘flawed’ migrant count
Local government leaders are concerned a new method of calculating immigration will leave public services with a funding shortfall.
The leaders of four local authorities have written to the Treasury to complain that the new method of measuring migration is flawed and produces “perverse results”.
The figures, complied by the Office for National Statistics (ONS), are used to calculate funding for public services, and council leaders are concerned resources will not be sufficient to meet real-world need.
Leaders from Slough, Westminster, Kensington & Chelsea and Hammersmith and Fulham have urged the Treasury minister John Healing not to use the new “improved” figures to calculate funding.
They claim the figures do not “remotely” reflect the actual situation and if used to calculate funding will leave public services under resourced.
The BBC contacted councils around the country and found two-thirds do not have faith in the collection of official migrant numbers in their area.
Immigration minister Liam Byrne explained that the ONS figures are collected independently of the government, but it would try to keep a “closer track” of immigration.
He told BBC Breakfast that a new group will meet in June to monitor the situation.
