Scotland’s population has passed 5.5 million for the first time, with new figures showing more people are moving here than leaving, but the SNP says only independence will give the country the power to shape migration in line with its own needs and values.
The statistics, published by the National Records of Scotland, confirm that in 2023 Scotland remained an attractive country for people to live, work and study, with net migration from elsewhere in the UK outstripping the number of people moving in the opposite direction.
With an ageing population, ministers say the figures underline the importance of positive net migration to fill skills gaps, sustain public services and grow the economy, particularly in rural areas where employers continue to face staff shortages.
Emma Roddick, SNP MSP for the Highlands and Islands, said those moving to Scotland were being drawn by policies such as free prescriptions and university tuition, benefits which are not available elsewhere in the UK, and argued this contradicted what she described as the opposition’s “talking Scotland down.”
She warned that rural constituencies, including the Highlands and Islands, are facing acute labour shortages as a direct result of Brexit and what she called “hostile Westminster economic policies”, neither of which, she noted, Scotland voted for.
“A Rural Visa Pilot Scheme would help mitigate against these and create routes for workers to come to Scotland, support our public services and help grow our economy,” she said, adding that Labour’s pledge during last year’s election campaign to explore such a scheme has since been broken.
“Labour said it would look at the introduction of such a scheme but since coming to power this has become yet another broken Labour promise,” she said.
The SNP says it will continue to press the UK Government to devolve powers over immigration to the Scottish Parliament, arguing that this is the only way to design a system that supports the needs of communities across the country.
“It is only with the full powers of independence that we will be able to make our own decisions on immigration policies,” Ms Roddick said, “based on our unique needs and values rather than being shaped by anti-immigration obsessed Westminster-based politicians and media.”
The party’s position is that without those powers, Scotland’s migration policy will remain constrained by UK-wide rules and politics, which they say do not reflect the realities of Scotland’s demographic or economic needs.
