Mexicans in the United Kingdom or Mexican Britons include Mexican-born immigrants to the United Kingdom and their British-born descendants. Although a large percentage of Mexican-born people in the UK are international students, many are also permanently settled and work in the UK as the community expands into its second generation.
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Demographics and population
According to the 2001 UK Census, 5,049 Mexican-born people were living in the UK. Mexico was the 102nd most common birthplace for British people; ahead of Lithuania but behind Chile (fifth out of all Latin American countries, again behind Chile but ahead of Peru). Mexicans like Chileans have a long history of immigration and emigration from the home and host countries.
According to the Institute for Mexicans Abroad, there is a slight gender imbalance: 47% of Mexican-born people resident in the UK are male and 53% female. Students make up around 40% of the population, whilst 13% are working in the UK. Spouses and children combined make up 9% of the Mexican-born population in the UK. The Institute for Mexicans Abroad has identified London as having the largest Mexican community in the UK as well as the most diverse, with many not registering with the consulate. There are significant numbers of Mexican students in the university towns of Sheffield, Oxford, Cambridge, Warwick, Manchester and Liverpool. There is evidence of increasing numbers of British nationals illegally employing Mexican domestic workers without valid work permits.
Culture and community
There are numerous Mexican-run associations, organisations and clubs in the UK. MexSoc UK was established by Mexican postgraduate students in the UK and arranges academic, sporting and social events year-round that involve no fewer than twenty British universities. Exatec UK is an alumni organisation for former students of the Monterrey Institute of Technology and Higher Education living in the UK. The British Mexican Society is a long-established Mexican association, formed in 1942 by the Mexican Ambassador to the UK. It remains a strong promoter of Mexican culture in the UK and organises many charitable events. Mexico Amigo is another example of a group established by Mexicans in the UK that specialises in fund-raising events. It was set up in 1990 by a number of London-based Mexicans.
On 23 June 2011, a group of Mexican entrepreneurs and companies led by Yves Hayaux du Tilly, partner of the London office of the Mexican law firm Nader, Hayaux & Goebel, established the Mexican Chamber of Commerce in Great Britain (MexCC) [1], becoming the first Mexican Chamber of Commerce in Europe and the second outside Mexico in the world.
The Ambassador of Mexico in the United Kingdom holds the title of Honorary Chairman of the MexCC.