Sunak is under pressure to act as the UK’s net migration figures for 2022 hit a record high

By SYLVIA HUI
Associated Press

LONDON (AP) — U.K. Prime Minister Rishi Sunak is facing heavy pressure from his own Conservatives to take swift action to bring down migration as new data showed net migration numbers were higher than previously thought. The Office for National Statistics on Thursday revised its estimates for net migration to the U.K. in the year to December 2022 to 745,000. That reflects the number of people arriving minus those leaving. The more hard-line wing of the Tories called for the prime minister to “act now” as a general election looms next year. The latest figures do show that net migration in the 12 months up to June 2023 was 672,000. Officials said that it was too early to tell if that’s the start of a new downward trend.