Scotland's estimated population rises to over 5.37 mln

The estimated population of Scotland was 5.37 million on June 30, 2015, the highest ever recorded, official statistics showed on Wednesday.

The figures produced by the National Records of Scotland show that Scotland's population is still increasing, mostly due to migration, said Tim Ellis, the registrar general of Scotland.

"The population is continuing to age and this change will bring both opportunities and challenges in the years ahead," he noted.

"As well as more people moving to Scotland than leaving, fewer babies were born during 2015 and there were more deaths than in 2014," he added.

The most common causes of death are still cancer, respiratory system diseases and ischaemic (coronary) heart disease, said Ellis.

Although mortality rates in Scotland have generally fallen more slowly than in the rest of Britain and elsewhere in Europe, the improvements over the last 60 years are still considerable and the impact is reflected in the increase in expectation of life.

"Despite these improvements, inequalities remain within Scotland. For example, males born around 2012 in the 10 percent least deprived areas in Scotland could expect to live 12.5 years more than males born in the 10 percent most deprived areas," said Ellis.

Life expectancy in Scotland has improved greatly over the last 33 years. Life expectancy of those born around 2014 is now 77.1 years for males and 81.1 years for females, according to latest figures. Endite