Scotland’s population is growing more slowly than rest of the UK, census data reveals
Scotland’s population has risen to a record high but is growing at a rate significantly lower than other parts of the UK, the first findings from the census have revealed.
Households across Scotland were asked to fill in the once-in-a-decade survey last year, with the national population standing at 5,436,600 on census day, 20 March.
This was an increase of 2.7 per cent since the last census was held in 2011, according to the first set of data released by National Records of Scotland (NRS).
However, this was a lower growth rate than in England and Wales, where the population increased by 6.3 per cent, and in Northern Ireland where the rise was 5.1 per cent.
The figures also showed that Scotland’s population is ageing and would have shrunk by nearly 50,000 were it not for inward migration.
More than a million over-65s were living in Scotland on census day, with the data also showing a trend towards smaller households, which NRS said was a symptom of an ageing population.
The number of over-65s has risen by 22.5 per cent since 2011 and the cohort is now more than 250,000 larger than the number of people under 15, which stood at 832,300.
Putting the change in context, the NRS said that in the 1971 census there were twice as many under-15s as over-65s, while in 2011 the two age groups were broadly similar in size.
There has been a census in Scotland every 10 years since 1801, except 1941, but Holyrood ministers controversially decided to delay the 2021 survey by a year due to the pandemic.
This meant it was out of kilter with other parts of the UK and achieved only an 89 per cent return rate, despite the deadline being extended by a month at a cost of £6m.
The Scottish Government promised to address the issues of depopulation and social isolation in light of the findings, partly by ramping up its efforts to attract migrants.
External Affairs Secretary Angus Robertson said Scotland was “an attractive place to come to live and work”, adding that the “ongoing population challenge” was partly explained by the damaging impact of Brexit.
“We will publish an addressing depopulation action plan which will set out the first phase of our response to population decline occurring in some of Scotland’s communities,” he added.
“We will also introduce a talent attraction and migration service to support more people to live and work here.”
Scottish Conservative external affairs spokesman Donald Cameron accused ministers of being “complacent”, adding: “The fact is that the increase in Scotland’s population is less than half the rate seen in the rest of the UK compared to the last census.
“It’s vital we attract more people to Scotland to staff our under-resourced NHS and boost economic growth, but the SNP’s obsession with higher taxation and their failures in public services are all bad signs for future provision, particularly in the context of our ageing population.”
Next year, more census results will be published on ethnicity, religion, the labour market, education and housing. Data on veterans, sexual orientation and trans status will also be included for the first time.