The number of births in the
The report by the Office for
National Statistics (ONS) said the increase - well above the 6.4 per cent jump
recorded among British-born women - was largely a result of a rise in the
proportion of foreign-born women in the
The increase in births means more
than one in five children born in
Meanwhile, the study also showed
that the highest proportion of births to foreign-born women in 2007 were in the
The 14-page ONS report said
rising fertility rates among UK-born women had been the largest single factor
increasing the overall number of births since 2004.
Official figures show that the
number of births in the
The report stated: 'The rise in
the overall total fertility rate is mainly due to increasing fertility among
UK-born women, since fertility among foreign born women has remained relatively
stable since 2004.
'However, foreign-born women, who
generally have higher fertility, are making up an increasing share of the
population, which is also acting to push the overall total fertility rate
upwards.
'A consequence of these changes
is that two-thirds of the total increase in births between 2001 and 2007 can be
attributed to women born outside the
'This has resulted in an increase
in the proportion of births to foreign-born women, from 15.3 per cent in 2001
to 21.9 per cent in 2007.'
The report added: 'Between 2001
and 2007 the number of births to foreign-born women living in the
But the report said the rises
were due to different causes.
Its authors wrote: 'The rise in
births to women born in the
'In contrast, the rise in the
number of births to foreign- born women can be attributed to the increase in
the population of women born outside the