By Jim Hislop

POPULATION FIGURES published yesterday show Scotland’s population increased by 16,400 to 5,094,800, against the previous trend of slow decline from the early 1970s.

The Registrar General’s 2005 review, published yesterday, also suggests population decline fears for Dundee may have been unfounded.

The city’s population last June was 142,170, and although that is only 300 more than in 2004 it gives the lie to the perception that Dundee would grow no more, if not actually decline.

At the launch of the review, Scotland’s Registrar General Duncan Macniven said, “This rise in population is partly because of a rise in births—there were 54,386 in 2005, 429 more than in 2004, although this was a modest rise in comparison to the previous year’s increase of 1525.

“There were 55,747 deaths, 440 fewer than in 2004 and the lowest total recorded since civil registration began in 1855.

“However, the main reason for the increase in population was because in-migrants exceeded out-migrants by 19,000. That migration gain was lower than in the previous year, but was still the second highest since current records began in the early 1950s.

“The number of people coming to Scotland from the rest of the UK exceeded the number moving in the opposite direction by 12,500—and net migration from the rest of the world totalled 7300. For the second year running, in-migrants from the rest of the UK exceeded out-migrants in every age group.”

Against the national trend, the population of Perth and Kinross fell slightly from 137,520 to 136,400, while Angus increased its population from 108,560 to 109,170.

Fife, too, increased from 354,600 to 356,740.

Mr Macniven said, “This year’s report looks in special detail at causes of death since 1855.

“Deaths from tuberculosis and other infectious diseases have declined dramatically since Victorian times. In 1855 tuberculosis accounted for 10,007 deaths, compared to 49 deaths in 2005.

“Good progress is being made in reducing the mortality from Scotland’s current three big killers—cancer, coronary heart disease and stroke.

“But, while there has been a big decrease in the number of men dying from lung cancer, the female death rate is rising slightly. And the increased death toll from alcohol-related diseases is extremely worrying.”

Mr Macniven went on, “Looking forward, Scotland’s population is projected to rise to 5.13 million in 2019 before falling below five million in 2036, reaching 4.86 million by 2044.

“The 30,881 marriages in Scotland in 2005 were 4% fewer than in 2004 but around the same number as in 2003.

“A quarter of the marriages were ‘tourist weddings’ where neither the bride nor the groom was resident in Scotland, although there was a fall in this category from 9710 in 2004 to 8817 in 2005.

“Gretna continued to be the most popular location, accounting for about one in six of all marriages, and nearly half of ‘tourist weddings’.”