Northern Ireland has witnessed the largest population surge in the United Kingdom over the past 20 years, according to figures contained in a new book published today.
The number of people rose by 10 per cent from 1981 to 2000 and now stands at just under 1.7 million, according to figures in a new yearbook produced by the British National Office for Statistics.
The increase compares with a fall in the population in Scotland which reported a decrease of 1.3 per cent to 5.1 million people last year.
Called UK 2002, the yearbook brings together data on a wide range of topics to give a insight into life in the UK today.
Using figures for 2000, the book shows that the population of the UK is currently 59,756 million, compared with 38.2 million in 1901. According to official predictions the population will reach 61.8 million by the year 2011.
The largest age group is from 16 to 65 for men and 60 for women which total makes up 61.7 per cent of the population. The next largest group are pensioners, 18.1 per cent then children aged five to 15 (14.2 per cent) and finally the under-5s - (6 per cent).
The number of people living in Wales increased by 4.7 per cent from 1981 to 2000 and now stands at just under three million.
England has by far the largest population the UK and has increased by 6.8 per cent since 1981 and is now just under 50 million people.
Meanwhile, the population of London is 7.375 million - up 8.4 per cent in the 19 years.
On the subject of weather, the book says the autumn of 2000 was the wettest in England and Wales since 1766.
The severe weather caused the flooding of over 10,000 properties and 11,000 people had to be evacuated from their homes.
PA