Labour’s plans to introduce VAT on private school tuition fees are also pushing some wealthy families to move north of the border, where their overall cost of living will be lower, Mr Ewer said.

He added: “And if you move to Scotland and your children live here for three years before applying to a Scottish university, they won’t have to pay tuition fees. »

The increase in internal migration to Scotland comes despite a tax campaign by the SNP on high incomes. The SNP was granted delegated powers to set its own income tax rates in 2017.

David Phillips, of the Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS), said the legacy of the pandemic was also at play. “People are looking for more indoor and outdoor space,” he said.

Analysis of 2022 data from the Center for Cities showed that people are more likely to move to Wales when they are of student age; in their early thirties; and aged between 55 and 64 years old.

Anthony Breach, associate director of the Center for Cities, said: “It seems to me that people are more likely to move from England to Wales to attend university, start a family or retire. »

Net internal migration out of Northern Ireland, which has a much smaller population than other UK countries, fell to its lowest level in three years, at just 39.

Increased internal migration will also partly reflect an increase in the overall population, which has increased by more than 7.5 million over the past 20 years.

Separate ONS data shows that it was local authorities in urban areas of England, such as Birmingham, the London borough of Newham, Coventry and Nottingham, which recorded the highest levels of net emigration, while that Cardiff was the local authority which recorded the highest level of net immigration. net inward migration to Wales.

However, these figures only represent movements in and out of local authorities and therefore do not necessarily represent movements between different countries within the UK.