At a time when we’re being told growth is the number one priority for Britain, one major European nation is seeing their economy grow at a rate of knots.
Last year, Spain’s GDP grew 3.2 per cent, according to preliminary official date for 2024. This was almost five times the eurozone average, and more than the USA.
One of the main reason’s for this? Immigration.
Writing for the Guardian, Spanish journalist María Ramírez said the population flows from Latin America and Morocco, along with other nations, have “boosted domestic demand and rejuvenated the workforce.”
Almost 90 per cent of new jobs were filled by workers of foreign origin or dual nationality, and unemployment is at its lowest level since 2007.
Ramírez explained that although there are other factors for Spain’s economic growth, it is migrations which is “still the most frequently cited reason for Spain’s strong performance and perhaps its most distinctive advantage compared with other countries.”
Beyond economic benefits, immigration has also “visibly changed Spain,” with more than 1 million people from Latin America now living in Madrid.
Although Spain still faces issues, such as low productivity and low wages, and immigration has “added to the pressure on affordable housing,” Ramírez said the country is in an “enviable” position compared to other European economies.
She concluded: “But for now, even if it is not perfect, Spain stands as a model for how migration can energise an economy and a society. Keir Starmer and other leaders of low-growth economies running out of ideas should take note. Ideological rigidity against foreign-born workers isn’t just xenophobic, it’s economically shortsighted.”
You can read Ramírez’s full piece on the Guardian website here.