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Brexodus: The UK may leave the EU, but the EU may already be leaving the UK

New data show more EU citizens are leaving and net migration of EU citizens to the UK has hit a five year low. These figures are worth paying attention to.

By Elisa Mosler Vidal
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englishbulterriersare great/Flickr. CC (by-sa)

The numbers are in

For the past year, studies have piled up showing large proportions of EU citizens in the UK – from doctors and tech workers to academics – were considering leaving the country. In the meantime, the issue of EU citizens’ rights in the UK has become a politically charged topic and consequently remained unresolved since the referendum in June 2016. This has taken its toll.

New data released on 22 February by the Office for National Statistics (ONS) shows that net EU migration decreased to 90,000 over the last year. This is 75,000 lower than the previous year. In fact, it is a five year low. It also shows that 130,000 EU citizens left the UK – the most since 2008.

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