Indians constitute the largest of the ethnic minority groups settled in Britain, according to the latest reports released by the Office for National Statistics.

Upto April 2001, Indians totalling 1,053,411 represented 1.8 per cent of the total population tagged at just over 59 million. They were followed by 747,285 Pakistanis (1.3 per cent) and 288,063 Bangladeshis (0.5 per cent). The remaining minority ethnic groups together accounted for 1.4 per cent of the population.

A further breakdown of the Indian population settled in England and Wales shows 467,000 are Hindus, 310,000 are Sikhs and 131,662 are Muslims.

Interestingly, 79 ethnic Chinese described themselves as Sikhs.

The total number of Muslims from all ethnic backgrounds is estimated at 1,546,626, out of which 179,773 are white, including migrants from Turkey, Cyprus, Bosnia and Albania although a substantial number (63,042) are thought to be white converts from within the UK.

The National Statistics Office says the overwhelming majority of the British population is white (92 per cent).

External Link: UK at a glance