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The difference being made up, presumably, of an immigrant population principally of working age. Undocumented or at least slipping between the cracks of official head-counting. Unaccounted for by the census, the labour force survey, social support systems... Living how? Room-sharing? Most, presumably, working for low-paid black-market jobs.
12 to 15 million extra people, most fitting that description, and most of them in South-East England? Does that seem possible?
Did these food analyses account for the ongoing trend for everyone to eat enough for two? Obesity is a real thing...
Around here we've had clearly noticeable immigration. Population levels are, I would estimate anecdotally, back to pre-miner's strike (and steel and textile industry collapse) levels. For Yorkshire that suggests the population has bounced back up by half a million.
Now obviously, not all of those are from outside the UK, but a large majority are.
All the same, replicate that across the country and you only get 7-10 million increase, unless we assume (maybe not unreasonably) that Manchester, Birmingham and London/SE have had a much larger proportionate increase.
And the 60 million figure is the 2001 Census one, which doesn't include social support system info or even labour force survey info.
So, I guess I'm saying:
a) It does look possible. b) I'm not sure that they are all "between the cracks" of society, so much as that the 60 million figure was known to be worrisome in 2001. There was the whole "1 million missing young men" (of whom I was one.) and numerous other issues.
BUT even if we say pop is 70 mil, with 7 mil "shadow pop" that is 10%, which is incredibly scary now I stop and think about it. 10% of the population...
Welcome to the Anglo disease...
If there really are this many extra people, then there are no employment, work volume, or productivity stats left standing... Terrible thought!
too many people in too little space is too many people...
give or take a few mill, same problems, writ larger... 'The history of public debt is full of irony. It rarely follows our ideas of order and justice.' Thomas Piketty
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