Population rockets as city immigration hits new high

The city has an extra 8000 residents - a 1.8 per cent rise from last year and the fastest-growing population in Scotland.

With more people wanting to live here, and fewer leaving, numbers are expected to continue rising.

While there are clear economic benefits from the swelling headcount there are also concerns that public services will struggle with the additional strain in a time where budgets are being slashed.

NHS Lothian already receives around 55 million less than it should for its size from the Scottish Government, while all four Lothians local authorities are looking to make efficiency savings before contemplating even more service users.

Graham Bell, spokesman for the Edinburgh Chamber of Commerce, said the city was becoming an increasingly attractive place to live and set up business, despite the recession.

"As far as migration goes people always go where the work and the money is, and Edinburgh is a great example of that," he said.

"If you were opening a business, you would want to do it here, and that is why so many people want to come to the city. Of course things aren't perfect in the local economy, but it's a lot better than most others."

The last great descent on the Capital came after the EU opened the door to eastern Europeans to move freely between countries. That led to a high of 30,000 Poles in Edinburgh, around half of whom left when the recession struck.

Experts said since then many have returned as the situation in their homelands has also deteriorated, and eastern Europeans make up the majority of last year's 11,000 overseas migrants, along with students.

The figures were released by the General Register Office for Scotland. They show that 31,000 people came to live in Edinburgh last year, compared with 28,000 four years ago. Only 23,000 left, while people are living longer and more births are taking place.

It means the current population is 486,120, and with the three other local councils also on the up, it is helping the Lothians on the way to hitting the predicted one million mark by 2023.

NHS Lothian is planning for an increased use of its services, and despite future cutbacks, has said it is confident it will be able to deal with the rise.