LONDON is welcoming more people from abroad than at any point in its long history, unless you count the Romans and the Normans, who weren’t exactly here on missions of peace.


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New government statistics show that about a third of Londoners were born outside the UK and, though the figures don’t cover this, it is thought up to another third were born in other areas of the UK.

Out of a total population of 7.4 million, 2.5 million are from outside Britain, figures from the Office for National Statistics show. Last year, that latter figure was 2.3 million.

“London has shared the benefits of immigration,” said a spokesperson for the Home Office.

Among countries-of-origin with over 100,000 people in London are Bangladesh, Ireland and Poland. Those with more than 50,000 include Australia, France and Kenya.