migration

• Patterns of migration involve push factors (negative attributes of a place of origin that force a migrant to leave) and pull factors (positive attributes of a place of destination that attract migrants)
• In rural to urban migration:

  PUSH factors include being far from everything, low spatial mobility, an aging population, and traditional or conservative settings

  PULL factors include more job opportunities, closer access to services, advanced technology, better healthcare, and more educational opportunities
• In migration from Less Economically Developed Countries (LEDC) to More Economically Developed Countries (AC):

  PUSH factors can be conflict, lack of human rights, instability, and better educational opportunities

  PULL factors can be generally safer conditions, more job opportunities, better quality of life, better access to healthcare, and more access to tertiary/quaternary jobs
• Migration impacts the population structure:

  • In the 1950s/60s, immigration from the Commonwealth coincided with the post-World War II baby boom, creating a natural increase where more babies were born than people died
  • Declining birth rates since the 1980s mean that migration is more responsible for population growth than natural increase
• Immigration into the UK:

  • Immigration is currently at an all-time high
  • Net migration is the difference between the number of people moving permanently into an area and out of that area
  • After World War II, a steady flow of immigrants from Commonwealth Countries entered the UK, followed by economic migrants from the EU after its expansion in 2004
• UK trends in migration:

  • Top 10 origin countries of immigrants in the UK (June 2021) include India, Poland, Pakistan, Ireland, Germany, Romania, Nigeria, South Africa, Italy, and China
  • Former Commonwealth countries and European countries are significant sources of immigration into the UK
• Migration is becoming more of an issue due to its link to globalization, increased connectedness, and the dynamic nature of the issue which constantly changes in terms of number, direction, reasons, demographic, and scale
• economic migrants are those who have moved because they want better economic opportunities
• pull factors are reasons why people move to another country
• push factors are reasons why people leave their home country