EU population passes half-billion mark thanks to immigration, as birth rate falls

BRUSSELS (AP) — The European Union's population has crossed the half-billion mark and the growth has come mostly from immigration, the Eurostat statistics agency said Tuesday.

As of Jan. 1, the 27-nation bloc had a population of 501.1 million — up 1.4 million from a year earlier, the report said.

Eurostat said 900,000 came from immigration over 2009, while 500,000 came from birth-minus-deaths population growth.

In 2008, Eurostat forecast that deaths would outpace births by 2015 in the EU, leaving immigration as the only source of population growth. The EU birth rate fell to 10.7 per 1,000 inhabitants last year, from 10.9 per 1,000 in 2008, while the death rate remained unchanged at 9.7 percent.

Many EU governments are debating raising the retirement age to offset the impact of a graying population. But some also face a public often wary about immigration; a 2009 EU survey found immigration was an area of concern in Malta, Spain, Denmark, Italy, Portugal and Britain.

Eurostat said the 2009 birth rates were highest in Ireland, Britain and France and lowest in Germany and Austria.

The death rates in Bulgaria, Latvia and Hungary outpaced birth rates, triggering a decline in natural population growth.

The 2009 report also found that:

— The largest population rises were in Luxembourg (17.2 per 1,000 inhabitants), Sweden (9.1), Slovenia (7.2), Belgium (7.1) and the United Kingdom (6.7).

— The largest population drops were recorded in Lithuania (6.2 per 1,000 inhabitants), Latvia (-5.7), Bulgaria (-5.6) and Germany (-2.5).

— There were 5.4 million births in the EU. The lowest birth rates were found in Germany (7.9 per 1,000 inhabitants), Austria (9.1), Portugal (9.4), Italy (9.5), Latvia and Hungary (9.6). The highest death rates were recorded in Bulgaria (14.2 per 1,000 inhabitants), Latvia (13.3), Hungary (13.0) and Lithuania (12.6).

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Online:

http://ec.europa.eu/eurostat