Meeting the challenges of a growing population

In a speech on Monday, David Cameron talked about the demographic challenges facing Britain and how best to meet them.

With Britain's population set to rise to 71 million by 2031, David explained that demographic changes, and the pressures associated with them, would make it difficult for the Conservatives to deliver our vision of opportunity, responsibility, and security.

He said that increases in life expectancy, net immigration, and household formation due to atomisation were the principal drivers of this change.

And he laid out a strategy to ensure firstly, that our population grows at a rate that's sustainable and secondly, that we're prepared for this level of growth.

To achieve a sustainable level of growth, David proposed controlling net immigration with annual limits, reforming welfare to get people into work and reduce the demand for migrant labour, and tackling family breakdown.

And he explained how a Conservative Government would ensure the country is prepared to deal with population growth in the key areas of housing, public services and transport.

"It is time for change. We need policy to reduce the level of net immigration. And we need policy to strengthen society and combat atomisation."

Read the full speech here