The Lancet: 6.5 million immigrants registered with British GPs 2007-2017

The Lancet, the leading medical magazine in the UK, recently said that 6.5 million migrants have registered with GPs in the last 10 years. 

This figure comes from the British Government's Office for National Statistics, but does not tell us how many migrants arrived and then left, or how many changed GPs (for example, when they moved from one town to another).

Still, this is a solid and very arresting statistic and one that's easy to remember and mention in conversation. It should be the subject of conversation across the country were it not for Brexit, to which it is linked. 

It is very hard to get real information about immigration from the Government because the number of immigrants coming into the country is hidden by talk of 'net immigration'. Net immigration does not mean the number of immigrants minus the number of immigrants who leave the UK, which would be very useful, but minus the total number of British people and immigrants who leave Britain. As Rod Liddle said, with net immigration a hundred thousand Britons leave the country, a hundred thousand Somalis enter, net result no change.