Interesting Facts

According to figures, from the Office for National Statistics’ the number of married couples with 1 child grew from 37 per cent to 40 per cent from 2003 to 2013. (A sociologist at Kent University, Professor Frank Furedi, has worked out that if this trend continues, by 2022 half of families in the UK will only have 1 child.)

50 years ago only 5% of young people in the UK went to university. (The ONS (Office for National Statistics) found that 27.2% of the UK population aged 16 to 74 had a degree or equivalent or higher, and according to the UK government's universities minister, David Willetts, the number of places at UK universities will have to grow by at least a quarter over the next 20 years. We have a long way to go to beat Finland though: In Finland 80% of young women are now going to university. Going to university may become as natural as going to school.)

Coleshill in North Warwickshire is England's Viagra capital. (The little market town of Coleshill only has a population of 6,343 people, but NHS figures show that last year, 54.87 prescriptions per 1,000 men were issued by GPs in the district for erectile dysfunction drugs such as Viagra, Cialis and Levitra, placing the town well ahead of its nearest rival for the dubious title, Wychavon, across the border in Worcestershire. The City of London has the lowest usage with just 1 prescription per 1,000 male patients. I do hope I don't end up getting a lot of spam for posting this one!)

If the UK followed China and imposed a fine (known as the “social maintenance fee” in China) on families for having more than one child, the equivalent penalty would be £260,000.   (The fine in China varies, but according to an article in the Economist, a husband and wife in Shanghai would have to pay 110,000 yuan (about £6,000) each. This is three times the city's average annual post-tax income. I'm the 3rd child, so my mum would not have been able to keep me, and probably my middle sister would have been doomed too.)

According to UK government statistics, over 1.2 million families in the UK have more than 2 children. (The EU average for a family with 3 or more children is 11.3%, but in the UK it is 15%, and the birth rate in the UK is at its highest for 40 years, and it's growing more quickly than anywhere else in Europe,  even though many families still opt to have one child.  France and Germany still have the highest overall population, but the UK is now 3rd, and catching up quickly.  According to an article in the Independent more women having children in their 20s, improved fertility treatment, immigration and the recession are all contributing to Baby Boom Britain.  I'm not sure where the recession comes into it.  Maybe people are seeking comfort in each other's arms.)

The British Government spends £18bn more on Wales every year than it gets back in tax. (This works out at £6,008 per head of the Welsh population.) Source

According to the UK's Office for National Statistics, almost four in ten of all the people born abroad live in London. (In fact the 2011 census showed that people born abroad make up 34 per cent of the capital’s population, but what is really funny is Cliff Richard and Joanna Lumley, who were both born in India to British parents are included in these statistics.)

According to economist James Henry financial assets held offshore round the world are worth “at least” $21tn and perhaps as much as $32tn. (He calculated that £6.3trillion of these assets are owned by just 92,000 people – or 0.001 per cent of the world’s population. The international campaign group Tax Justice Network, which commissioned the research estimates that around $250billion is lost in taxes each year by governments worldwide as a result of the wealthiest individuals holding their assets offshore.) Source

According to the Office for National Statistics, the population of England and Wales has surged by 3.7million in the past decade (10 years). (It's the biggest increase for more than 200 years. The increase has been driven by a number of factors: immigration, increased life expectancy and fertility rates.   The biggest increase was in London, which grew by 12%, gaining more than 850,000 inhabitants and taking its total population to more than 8 million.  Another reason that I never go there.)

The Census Bureau in America says that there are now nearly 2 million people in the USA in their 90s. (This is three times as many as there were back in 1980 and the number is projected to reach 9 million by 2050, but aging isn't just a phenomena in the West, it is a global issue:  Worldwide, by 2050, the increase in population ages 65 and over is forecast to be 2.5 times that of the population ages 0-4. This is an exact reversal of the situation in 1950.  Of course some people think this is a problem, but when it comes to aging, I for one am all for it!)

According to the Population Reference Bureau, about 107 billion people have lived on Earth. (They calculated it using stats and guesses from when Homo sapiens first walked the earth, about 50,000 years ago, and assumed that 50,000 years ago there was a population of 2.  I bet there was a humdinger of an argument about that statistic.) How many people have ever lived? Year Population Births / 1,000 Births since previous date Source: Population Reference Bureau estimates 50,000BC 2 - - 8,000BC 5,000,000 80 1,137,789,769 AD1 300,000,000 80 46,025,332,354 1200 450,000,000 60 26,591,343,000 1650 500,000,000 60 12,782,002,453 1750 ...

The United Nations projected the world population to pass the seven billion mark today, and several countries have announced a "7 billionth baby" to mark the milestone. Let's just hope they can grow up in a fair and just world.

According to a study in the journal Science, the financial burden of ageing populations in industrialized societies is less than expected. (This is because even though wealthy countries face an unprecedented rise in the number of people over 65 the general health of the elderly has improved. This means that although the British population is getting older, it is also likely to be getting healthier. I'll just switch on my Wii Fit now.)

According to the Office for National Statistics, by 2033 the population of the UK will rise from 61m to 71.6m. (This will be the fastest rate of population growth in over a century, but not because we're being busy little bunnies, most of the growth will be through migration.)

Italy has the fourth-largest population in the European Union. (But over 20% of the population is over 65 years old, and with falling birth rates (Italians used to be known for having large families, but Italy is now known for having Europe's lowest birthrate) this could soon end.)

The population of Britain is expected to pass 70 million by 2028. (It's currently only 61 million.)

According to data from the Office for National Statistics, England is now the most densely populated major country in the European Union. (This doesn't surprise me. You only have to go shopping in Nottingham on a Saturday to realise there are too many people.)

According to the Office of National Statistics, over 60s in the UK outnumber children for the first time. (This problem can be easily addressed, so come on guys - get on with it.)

There are 5.5 million Brits living abroad. (Studies by the Institute for Public Policy Research, published on the BBC News website indicates that at least 5.5m British-born people live abroad. Seemingly without immigration the British population would be falling. I don't think the country is collapsing due to my absence though. On researching this interesting fact I discovered that MI5 is warning Brits travelling abroad for work or holidays to be aware of the danger of being accidentally recruited into a foreign power's intelligence network . Oh dear, I might be leaking important grammar secrets.)

The population of the Earth has more than doubled since 1950.