December 07, 2005

(Educators) Ethnic minority groups accounted for nearly three-quarters of Britain's population growth between 1991 and 2001, a report said today.

Black and Asian groups grew by 1.6 million in the decade, compared with an increase of 600,000 among the white population, the London School of Economics (LSE) study said.

The fastest-growing category, according to an analysis of census data, was Black African, which more than doubled from 212,000 to 485,000 in 10 years.

Bangladeshi, Pakistani and Chinese groups also saw rapid growth.

The total UK population rose 4 per cent in the decade, and 73 per cent of this growth was among ethnic minority groups, the study said.

The LSE also concluded that Britain has a growing North-South divide, with all the

larger cities and conurbations except London suffering decline.

'Avoid segregation'

Prof Power said: "The changing composition and settlement patterns of minority ethnic groups that this report highlights should inform the way we seek to understand our society, our cities and neighborhoods

.

"It should encourage more localized work on the detailed patterns of migration of all communities, white and minority, and it should reinforce the arguments for a strong urban policy, in favor of avoiding the risks of segregation and inner-city collapse that have characterized patterns of high minority concentration in America."

She added: "Our analysis underlines a worrying trend of a growing North-South divide in Great Britain.

"One obvious mechanism to limit this uneven development would be to invest more in remediating the damaged urban landscape of former industrial areas, particularly the major cities which are the hub of their regional economies."

The increase in the number of people from different ethnic backgrounds and countries was "one of the most significant changes in Britain during the 1990s", the report said.

Ethnic populations grew in virtually every local council area, including those with very few black and Asian residents at the start of the 1990s.

"Most areas therefore became more mixed," said the report.

"However, in some inner areas of Britain's largest conurbations, minority population growth combined with white population decline.

"As a result, minority ethnic groups made up a greater share of the population of some urban neighborhoods in 2001 than they had in 1991.

"In some major cities, a higher proportion of people from ethnic minorities were living in areas of high minority ethnic population than they were in 1991."

Census data showed the ethnic minority population rose from 3,104,000 in 1991 to 4,623,000 in 2001, amounting to 8 per cent of the total UK population.