> It was ~8.6 million at the start of 2020, and ~9.2 million at end of 2023. So 700,000 people just like that in 4 years. That's quite a lot. Considering that

> It was ~8.6 million at the start of 2020, and ~9.2 million at end of 2023. So 700,000 people just like that in 4 years. That's quite a lot. Considering that the unemployment rate of 3.8% corresponds to 1,320,000 people, 700k extra would make a big difference to the unemployment rate (which would be 5.8% if those 700k they were counted as "unempployed"). And of course there are the criteria for being "employed". If you are on part-time or zero-hours contract, your hours and thus income can significantly decrease but you're still "employed". So would be interesting to see data on that if there are. > But as you say that’s explainable by population growth, which means it doesn’t count Of course it counts. And of course it means that average living standards are falling. Overall people are producing less per capita on average. So either there is a recession across the board that is masked by the population increase or the new immigrants fill new jobs that are much less productive, which isn't good, either in a country that has a productivity problem. > And if it’s immigration, then I would guess those new people are mostly better off than they were before That's irrelevant. It's the situation in the UK that matters.