Indian and Nigerian nationals were the most employed nationals in the United Kingdom, surpassing Britons, between 2019 and 2023.
This is according to data from His Majesty’s Revenue and Customs (HMRC).
During this period, employment for European Union nationals in the UK dropped by 241,600, reflecting a notable shift in the workforce composition.
These statistics align with earlier reports from BusinessDay, which highlighted that the UK National Health Service (NHS), the country’s largest employer, identified Nigerians as among its top five largest employee groups.
The report, which ranks the NHS workforce by nationality, places Nigeria among the top five countries with nationals working at the NHS. The report also shows that approximately 10,494 Nigerians are currently employed by the NHS, just behind Poland, which has 10,520 health workers in the service.
The official figures, obtained through a Freedom of Information (FOI) request, reveal that the most substantial employment growth was among Indian nationals, with an increase of 487,900. In comparison, employment among Nigerian nationals rose by 278,700, while UK nationals saw an increase of 257,000 jobs between December 2019 and December 2023.
Overall, there were 1.481 million additional employment during this period, with 1.465 million of these filled by individuals from outside the EU.
Tory MP Neil O’Brien, a former government minister, who requested the data, noted that these figures illustrate the ‘extraordinary changes’ following the implementation of Britain’s post-Brexit migration system in January 2021.
Surge in migration to the UK
The BBC says the United Kingdom is one of the most popular destinations, as the number of Nigerians granted UK work visas quadrupled since 2019 as a result of post-Brexit immigration rule changes.
The surge in Nigerian nationals entering the UK workforce is particularly true where many skilled professionals, particularly in the health sector, have been emigrating in search of better opportunities and living conditions.
This trend has significantly contributed to the increasing number of Nigerians employed in the UK, particularly in essential services like healthcare.
However, the UK has since responded to this increase by tightening the rules for those seeking work visas as well as student visas.
