What can the UK learn from the impact of migrant populations on national life expectancy?
Lucinda HiamClaire X ZhangRachel BurnsFrances Darlington-PollockMatthew WallaceMartin McKeePublished in: Journal of public health (Oxford, England) (2022)
Improvements in life expectancy at birth in the UK had stalled prior to 2020 and have fallen during the COVID-19 pandemic. The stagnation took place at a time of relatively high net migration, yet we know that migrants to Australia, the USA and some Nordic countries have positively impacted national life expectancy trends, outperforming native-born populations in terms of life expectancy. It is important to ascertain whether migrants have contributed positively to life expectancy in the UK, concealing worsening trends in the UK-born population, or whether relying on national life expectancy calculations alone may have masked excess mortality in migrant populations. We need a better understanding of the role and contribution of migrant populations to national life expectancy trends in the UK.