Britain’s population is densely populated. When compared to France, the country is twice densely populated. In the year 2001, the population of the country was recorded to stand at a low of 59 million people. Britain is ranked 18
in the world in terms of its population size. This paper is a research on the population status of Britain and the effects that are generated by the status of the population.
In the year 1950, the population of the country stood at around 50.6 million people, by the year 1970 the population had increased by a whole 5 million people. This increase ignited concerns and as a result, the government appointed population panel. By the year 2011, the population of Britain had exceeded 62 million, and the rate of increase stood at half a million per year. The increased net migration into the country and natural increase due to the rising fertility levels answers this population increase. The birth rate of Britain stands at 12.29 births per 1000 people, the death rate in the country is 9.33 deaths per 1000 people in the population. The net migration rate stands at 2.6 migrants per 100 people in the population. Britain has an infant mortality rate of 4.62 deaths per every 1000 live births (Barrow, 2012).
The country has a sex ratio of 1.052 males per female at birth and 1.05 males per female at the age of 15 years and below. The total sex ratio of the country stands at 0.98 males per every female in the country. The organization of age structure in the country is as follows: 17.3% of the total population is individuals who are 0-14 years of age, 66.2% of the population is the individuals who have 15-64 years of age, and 16.5% of the population is of the 65 and older individuals.
When it comes to ethnicity, the country has several ethnic groups. The white ethnic group is further divided into the English who have 83.6% of the total population followed by the Scottish who have 8.6% of the population, Welsh 4.9% and the northern Irish who have 2.9% of the total population. The black, ethnic group occupies 2% of the population, Pakistani 1.3%, Indian 1.8%, mixed 1.2% and the other ethnic groups occupy 1.6% of the population. In the religions found in the country, the Christian community has 71.6% of the total population while the Muslim have 2.7%, Hindu have 1%, other 1.6%, and the unspecified or the non-believers form 23.1% of the total population of Britain (Barrow, 2012).
In 1973, the Britain’s government appointed a population panel, which commended the stationary population statistics and advised the government to include family planning within the country’s National Health Service. This issue subsequently led to the decrease in the fertility rate and the net migration that had been established (Barrow, 2012).
Natural disasters have had their impact on the demographic statistics of Britain in the twentieth century. However, their effects in terms of deaths that arise do not have any major impact on the population of the country. The great population increase rate of Britain is giving a major blow to the economic status of Britain. Many people have been rendered jobless since all job positions are taken. The country has an unemployment rate of 5.5 million people compared to the official unemployment rate of 2.5 million (Barrow, 2012).
The government of Britain needs to find a lasting solution to the problem associated with its population before things get out off hand. Projections by the national statistics office suggest that the population of the country will be at an astounding 70 million people by the year 2030, if the current growth rate remains the same.
Reference
Barrow M. (2012). What is the population of Britain?
Retrieved from Britich life and culture: http://www.woodlands- junior.kent.sch.uk/customs/questions/population.html
