“But falling population is a much worse problem where you get deserted villages, an older population with fewer workers, places where there are no or few kids which does not feel like a dynamic, vibrant country.”

Turkey and Russia, which have larger populations than the UK, France or Germany, are not included in the comparison as they are not wholly in Europe.

The record high for the year 2022 has forced Rishi Sunak to all but ditch the Conservative 2019 manifesto pledge to bring down overall numbers of immigration.

The rise was driven by 1.2 million immigrants, the majority (925,000) of whom were non-EU nationals who mainly arrived for work, study and humanitarian reasons, the ONS estimate showed.

People arriving on study visas were the largest group of immigrants, with 361,000 students arriving after the reintroduction of a two-year post-study work visa and a Government-sponsored strategy to boost numbers, compared to 235,000 workers.

The number of family members of foreign students arriving in the UK more than doubled to 85,000, according to the ONS.

More up-to-date Home Office figures suggesting the number had increased even further to 149,400 in the year ending March 2023, suggesting the Government’s crackdown announced last week would have some impact, if not a decisive one.

The large increase in the number of work visas coming to the UK was largely driven by the recruitment of health and care, and seasonal agricultural workers to cover labour shortages, Home Office statistics showed.

The estimates also included about 172,000 people who came to the UK on largely temporary refugee resettlement schemes, for example from Ukraine, Hong Kong and Afghanistan, as well as, for the first time, 76,000 applicants for asylum.

Jay Lindop, director of the centre for international migration at the ONS, said a series of “unprecedented world events throughout 2022”, together with the lifting of restrictions following the Covid-19 pandemic, led to record levels of international immigration to the UK.

The Migration Observatory at the University of Oxford suggested the numbers had “peaked”.

Rishi Sunak vowed to bring down the number from the level he inherited when he took office last year, when net migration was estimated at 504,000.

The Prime Minister told ITV’s This Morning: “Numbers are too high, it’s as simple as that. And I want to bring them down.”

Separate figures published yesterday by the Home Office showed the backlog of asylum cases in the UK has hit a new record high, with a total of 172,758 people waiting for an initial decision on an asylum application in the UK at the end of March 2023, despite Mr Sunak’s pledge to bring down the backlog.

Shadow Home Secretary Yvette Cooper said: “The Conservatives’ chaotic approach means that work visas are up 119 per cent, net migration is more than twice the level ministers were aiming for, and the asylum backlog is at a record high despite Rishi Sunak promising to clear it this year.”