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London will have million extra people in 20 years
Nicholas Cecil, Deputy Political Editor27 Aug 2009
London will be crammed with nearly 2,000 more people per square mile within two decades.
A startling average of 14,593 individuals will be living in each square mile of the capital by 2031 compared with 12,663 now - a rise of 1,930 - according to analysis of official figures.
The Office for National Statistics data also shows that a baby boom pushed up Britain's population last year by 408,000 to hit 61.4million. It was the biggest rise for nearly 50 years.
Statisticians said the birth rate increase was caused in part by higher fertility rates among Britons and also by immigration, as foreign-born mothers tend to have more children.
Net immigration fell by 44 per cent to 118,00 last year, but more than half of the rise in births were from foreign mothers.
There were 791,000 births in the UK last year, an increase of 33,000 on 2007. There are also more women of child-bearing age.
Across England, inhabitants per square mile will soar from just over 1,000 to 1,621 over the next century, a rise of 57 per cent by 2106.
MPs and experts warned of water and housing shortages, as well as pressure on public services such as GPs, schools and transport.
They also said Londoners' quality of life could suffer, with fewer green spaces.
David Green, director of conservative think tank Civitas, said Britain was more than three times as populated as France and 70 per cent more crowded than Germany - as well as having more people per square mile than India.
He said: "England has already reached the point where we should try to limit population growth."
A million more people will inhabit the 607 square miles of the capital in 2031, just under 8.9million compared with nearly 7.7million now. "It will pose challenges to make sure people have a good quality of life," said shadow London minister Justine Greening.
The Cabinet Office stressed that demographic change remained "central" to policy development across government.
