Immigration fuelled the second largest annual population increase in England and Wales since the Second World War last year, official figures showed.
The population is estimated to have grown by more than 700,000 people in the year to June 2024, the second largest annual increase since records began in 1949.
It was eclipsed only by the 821,210 population increase in the 12 months to mid-2023, with growth in both years driven almost entirely by record rises in the number of migrants flocking to Britain.
Net international migration - the difference between people moving to the country and leaving - accounted for 98 per cent of the estimated population increase of 706,881 people.
There were an estimated 61.8 million people in England and Wales in mid-2024, up from 61.1 million in mid-2023, according to the Office for National Statistics (ONS).
