New Data Shows Rise of Foreign Workers in Brexit-Voting Areas

New data has revealed a surprising trend across the United Kingdom: areas that voted to leave the European Union in 2016 have seen a faster rise in the number of foreign workers compared to the rest of the country. This report builds on earlier findings from June 2026, which first highlighted how the makeup of the local workforce has changed significantly in these regions over the last decade.

According to The Guardian, while large cities that voted to remain in the EU still have the highest total number of workers from outside the UK, the rate of growth is different in smaller towns. In places like Wigan, for example, the percentage of foreign workers has more than doubled since 2016. In contrast, the national average for the growth of foreign workers across the UK was only about 40 percent during the same period. This suggests that migration is becoming a much more visible part of daily life in areas that were not used to high levels of immigration before the Brexit vote.

Anand Menon, a professor at King’s College London and director of The UK in a Changing Europe, explained why this matters for local politics. He noted that the speed of change is often more important to people than the actual number of new arrivals. "People react to change," Menon said. He pointed out that while an extra 10,000 people in a large city like London might not be noticed, 200 new arrivals in a smaller town like Boston would be very obvious to the people living there. This feeling of rapid change can influence how residents feel about their local communities.

Beyond the workforce data, the investigation also looked at economic health. The Guardian found that many of the areas that voted strongly to leave the EU have become more deprived—meaning they have less money and fewer resources—over the last ten years. These areas have often struggled with slower improvements in housing and local services. Meanwhile, areas that voted to remain in the EU, such as Bristol and Cambridge, have seen the largest improvements in their economic conditions during the same period.

It is important to note that these two trends—the rise in foreign workers and the economic decline—should not be seen as a simple cause-and-effect relationship. Many of the areas that voted for Brexit already had long-standing economic problems before the referendum took place. Furthermore, wider research suggests that immigration has had only a very limited effect on the wages or job opportunities of people born in the UK. Instead, the data highlights a broader pattern where some parts of the country are falling behind while others are moving ahead.

This economic gap is visible in several ways. The Guardian’s analysis of government data shows that areas with higher Leave votes have tended to fall behind in health measures. This includes higher risks of early death, more people relying on health-related government benefits, and a greater number of hospital admissions for serious illnesses. While Remain-voting areas have climbed up the rankings for quality of life, many Brexit-voting areas have seen their position stagnate or get worse.

Looking ahead, these findings raise questions about the future of these communities. The UK saw a major increase in migration after the Brexit vote, especially through health and care visas, with numbers reaching a peak of 944,000 in the year ending March 2023. However, net migration—the difference between the number of people arriving and the number of people leaving—has since fallen significantly as visas expire. As the country moves forward, the challenge for policymakers will be to address the economic struggles of these towns while managing the social changes that come with a more diverse workforce. The data makes it clear that the impact of the Brexit vote continues to be felt in complex ways across the nation, far beyond the initial political decision.