Britain to have Europe’s youngest population

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London, March 3: With a surge in babies born to immigrant parents, Britain is on course to becoming Europe’s youngest population by 2035, Daily Mail reported Saturday.

In contrast to the previously high numbers of people over 65 in Britain, an increased birth rate in the past decade has reversed the trend thanks in part to the numbers of immigrant babies.

The figures mean Britain is now predicted to go from having the second highest proportion of retired people to the fifth lowest in Europe, according to the Office for National Statistics.

Estimates show that the number of people aged 65 or over in Britain increased by 1.7 million between 1985 and 2010.

In 1985, Britain was second only to Sweden for the number of people aged 65 in its population.

Britain ranks 15th out of the 27 European Union countries.

But by 2035, forecasts show that the percentage will have climbed at such a slow rate that Britain will have the fifth lowest number in Europe, higher than only Slovakia, Luxembourg, Cyprus and Ireland.

The Office for National Statistics has forecast that Britain will have nearly 17 million people over 65 in its population by 2035.

IANS