The UK’s population is currently projected to rise to 70 million by 2036, an increase of two million above today’s figure, and seven million more people than in 2010. That change comes at a cost to our natural environment and quality of life, and the public is rightly concerned.

At the same time, concerns about the UK’s low birth rate and population ageing are increasingly being articulated in the media and politics. Population Matters believes such concerns are legitimate but exaggerated and short-sighted, and is concerned that they could lead to social and political pressure on people to have larger families.

We believe that all countries, including the UK, should have policies intended to ensure a sustainable population. By “sustainable population”, we mean a level and age distribution of population that provides the best quality of life for their citizens, protects their natural environment, ensures the wellbeing of future generations and, just as importantly, has positive effects beyond their borders.

Unfortunately, no recent UK government has fully grasped the implications of demographic change or developed any overall policy to address it. Nor do any of the political parties in the UK.

This political lack of will stems primarily from ignorance of the nature and implications of demographic change, and concern that the issue is too politically sensitive to address.

We are therefore calling on the government and political parties to remove the politics from population and establish an independent official body to conduct research and policy analysis on demography, and provide objective, evidence-based advice to the government, parliament and the public on this issue. You can learn more about our proposals in the letter we have sent to the leaders of the major Westminster-based UK parties.

Please support our call

You can support our call in two ways.

Contact the party leaders below, on this page.

Contact your MP – click here.

contact party leaders

Please contact the government and party leaders at the addresses provided below, to support our call for a national demographic committee. Please use or adapt the short letter below, which is of a suitable length to fit the character limit of the 10 Downing St contact form. If you adapt it, of course, ensure that your letter is reasonable, brief and polite. Politicians respond best to positive proposals and sensitivity regarding controversial subjects.

Please do share any replies you receive with us, by contacting supporters@populationmatters.org

EMAIL/letter

I am one of the majority of people in the UK who is concerned about our projected future population growth and believe that it has a negative effect on our wellbeing, public services and natural environment. Despite the evidence of the negative impacts of population growth and polls showing that a majority of people are concerned about it, no political party is engaging with the challenges posed by demographic change.

I am therefore calling on you to recognise the importance of confronting all those challenges and to take the necessary steps to ensure holistic, integrated, informed and active policymaking in this area. As a first step, I urge you to support the call made by Population Matters for the establishment of an independent advisory body in the UK which can provide objective, evidence-based advice to the government, parliament and public on issues of population and its impact, and provide policy options to address those.

I look forward to your reply.

contact the UK’s Party leaders

Below we have listed the most convenient options to contact different Party leaders, including web forms, addresses and email addresses.

Labour Party: Keir Starmer

Email: leader@labour.org.uk

Postal address:

The Rt HonSir Keir Starmer MP

Prime Minister

10 Downing Street

London

SW1A 2AA

Prime Minister’s Office web form

Conservative Party: Rishi Sunak

Email: rishi.sunak.mp@parliament.uk

Postal address:

Rishi Sunak MP

House of Commons

London

SW1A 0AA

Liberal Democrats: Ed Davey

Contact form (select “I have some feedback for you”)

Postal address:

Sir Ed Davey MP

House of Commons

London

SW1A 0AA

Green Party: Carla Denyer and Adrian Ramsey

Email: leader@greenparty.org.uk

Contact form

NOTE The situation in Scotland is distinct from Westminster as the Scottish National Party government in Scotland has its own population policy. At this stage in the campaign, we are not lobbying them or other Scottish parties.