The Government admitted yesterday that immigration is too high, after figures were published suggesting that official projections have underestimated wildly the number of people moving to Britain.

Figures from the Office for National Statistics show that 190,000 immigrants will be coming to the country every year for the next quarter of a century. Two years ago the office estimated that the figure would be 145,000. The projections mean almost 2 million will arrive every decade until 2031, a total of 4.75 million.

Liam Byrne, the Immigration Minister, said measures must be taken to limit numbers. He said: “This report shows what could happen unless we take action now. Frankly, it underlines the need for swift and sweeping changes to the immigration system in the next 12 months. Migration is bringing new wealth but also new worries to Britain.”

The Office for National Statistics said: “This increase is partly due to taking account of data for two new years – 2004 and 2005 – where net migration to the UK has been at record levels, and partly because of the impact of methodological changes.” The changes would also affect estimates of the way migrants are distributed across the country, the office said.

England is projected to have 171,500 new immigrants a year, about 40,000 more than previous estimates. Scotland’s new arrivals are put at 8,500 a year compared with 4,000 previously. Wales is expected to welcome 2,000 fewer new immigrants, at 9,500 a year.

Immigration has been running at record levels since Labour came to power, and the latest estimates indicate that the upward pressure remains strong. In 2005 net immigration was four times higher than when Labour came to power. The 190,000 figure is only just below the record annual net immigration figure reached in 2004, when 223,000 immigrants arrived. Net immigration was 47,000 in 1997, but in every year since has been running at well over 100,000.

Damian Green, the Tory immigration spokesman, said: “This rips apart the Government’s previous complacent assumptions about net immigration. Ministers have had their heads in the sand for too long.”

Sir Andrew Green, chairman of Migrationwatch, which campaigns against mass immigration, said: “This new assumption recognises that the present levels of immigration are likely to continue unless the Government moves from rhetoric to really effective measures.”

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