London, England - France's 6th Largest City

[M II A II R II K]

London, France's sixth biggest city


29 May 2012

By Lucy Ash



Read More: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-18234930

More French people live in London than in Bordeaux, Nantes or Strasbourg and it is now thought to be France's sixth biggest city in terms of population.

- Like many Londoners at the end of a busy working week, they have come to unwind over a few drinks. But if you move a bit closer, you realise they are all speaking French. They are not tourists, exchange students or off-duty au pairs. They all work in creative industries, have lived in east London quite some time and consider it home.

- Today there are French people in every corner of London and their numbers have been growing, with the result that in next week's parliamentary election in France they - along with expats in Scandinavia - will be voting for a candidate to represent them in the National Assembly. The French consulate in London estimates between 300,000 and 400,000 French citizens live in the British capital - many in London's cutting-edge creative hub, in the East End.

- Malika is much in-demand as an illustrator. Her commissions include a bold, playful design for a new edition of the Kama Sutra, an album cover for a French rock band and artwork for a Californian beachwear company. Being in London and speaking English gives her access to a wider client base - Malika sees the city as a gateway to globalisation and also relishes freedom from French bureaucracy. "With a new venture in Paris you always think first of what is going to go wrong. I find the system much easier here - you don't have so many rules and so much paperwork," she tells me.

- Marine Schepens, who works for a fashionable advertising agency, says UK companies are more prepared to give young people a chance because it is easier to terminate their contracts than in France. This fluidity makes employees less risk-averse too. "I changed careers a year ago but I would have never done that if I was still in France. I'd have thought, 'I'm so lucky to have a job - I must hang on to it.'"

- Nadege Alezine, a journalist from Bordeaux, says life in London is not for the faint hearted. She runs a website aimed at the French community called bealondoner.com "If you want security and nice holidays you stay in France. If you crave adventure and want to get new skills, you come here," she says. That is not to say she does not miss France. Sipping her drink, she sighs. "Life in France was easy. You know, good food and wine. I lived near the sea and not far from the ski slopes. And sometimes when London's grey and rainy I think, 'What on earth am I doing here?'

- Hamid Senni, a business consultant based in London, was one of eight children born to Moroccan immigrants in the south of France. A well-meaning teacher at his school suggested he change his name to Lionel. "Because of your name you will be discriminated against, because of your skin colour, and even the address on your CV can stop you from getting a job," he says. "As for your skills and competencies - none of that counts in France if you don't fit in the box - so I left," he adds. Hamid now advises many French companies on how to diversify their workforce and he lectures at Sciences Po, one of the country's most prestigious universities.

- Cleo Soazandry, another young French national with African roots, has a mother from Madagascar and a father from Guinea. Her parents met in France where Cleo was born. In her early teens, the family moved from Paris to London. "I was really pushed by my teachers here," she says. "Suddenly I realised I could actually become somebody here, be ambitious." Cleo adds that seeing black presenters on television made a deep impression on her as there were virtually none in France at the time. "It's like my eyes opened up when I came here - I think the American dream is also present here in the UK."

.....

[pesto]

Very interesting; makes sense given the physical proximity and the blending of world cultures. Is this being read as a decline in work opportunities in France?

The other great culture/media cities (LA, NY) have had British colonies for decades. Maybe just a coincidence but lately I have heard more French (joining Farsi, Hebrew and Spanish) in Beverly Hills and the westside generally.

[Ch.G, Ch.G]

I remember someone posting a similar article a couple of years ago...

[Minato Ku]

There are only about 130,000 people born in France living in UK.
This numbers come from UK stat of 2011.
How there could be over 300,000 or even 400,0000 french people in London. :nuts:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Foreign...United_Kingdom

With 300,000 people the french community would be by far the largest foreign born community in London.

Five most common foreign countries of birth in London in 2011
India: 253,000
Bangladesh: 135,000
Poland: 126,000
Republic of Ireland: 121,000
Nigeria: 106,000

More french born than Indian born people in London
All of this is overstatement, nothing more.

Other thing to add.
There are only 70,000 french voters in UK and Ireland.

[johnnypd]

Originally Posted by Minato Ku

There are only about 130,000 people born in France living in UK.
This numbers come from UK stat of 2011.
How there could be over 300,000 or even 400,0000 french people in London. :nuts:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Foreign...United_Kingdom

With 300,000 people the french community would be by far the largest foreign born community in London.

Five most common foreign countries of birth in London in 2011
India: 253,000
Bangladesh: 135,000
Poland: 126,000
Republic of Ireland: 121,000
Nigeria: 106,000

More french born than Indian born people in London
All of this is overstatement, nothing more.

Other thing to add.
There are only 70,000 french voters in UK and Ireland.

agreed, it's a bullshit figure that is way over the top by a power of 4 or 5.

i imagine the french population of london will rise even further now that the top rate of tax is being raised to 75% though

[mousquet]

Lots of young French people fascinated by London though, anyone in France knows it's an undeniable fact. Of course London enjoys its language that's worldwide spread - a huge advantage - and its reputation of dynamism and friendly atmosphere, while people have a feeling of suffering from a lack of opportunities in France. Yet as far as Paris goes, its economy's bigger than London's for now but all other cities throughout the country are far slower.

I think our problems are easily recognizable: words like consensus (general agreement) decentralization and flexibility are still very misunderstood in France, which causes many stupid difficulties. There's no future for stubborn people in this world and given the stubborn way the French act all the time, it seems almost a miracle that France is still among the most advanced nations. Hopefully our new national administration will be astute enough to allow some improvement in the overall mentality. I'm pretty sure there's a massive potential wasted in this country for the only reason that people are completely unable to trust one another. A couple of examples:

• entrepreneurs (especially the most successful) are usually taken for selfish bastards that would treat people like their slaves.
• public workers are willingly called lazy butts paid for doing nothing.
• unemployed people from poor ghettos are treated like scum, discriminated, including those college-educated.
• emerging countries such as China are seen by most as a terrible threat.

And it goes like that on and on. No wonder some want to leave the country, for things are obviously much harder, bringing rough frustrations in that kind of pitiful atmosphere.

Oh well, in short London gets a significant number of French yuppies whereas France's countrysides get loads of retired British.

[isaidso]

The often quoted statement in Canada was that Los Angeles was Canada's 4th largest city. It's usually pegged around 800,000 which would drop it to 7th largest Canadian city these days.

[10023]

It probably just seems this way because they are probably over-reprsented in certain neighborhoods. In SoHo and the West Village here and New York, there are French, Germans and Italians all over the place, so you might get the impression that there are hundreds of thousands of them in the city. Not so, but they all go to the same restaurants and cafes that I do.

Is metro Chicago still Poland's second city? I know that New York is still the second largest Jewish city after Tel Aviv.

[Kingofthehill]

Originally Posted by isaidso

The often quoted statement in Canada was that Los Angeles was Canada's 4th largest city. It's usually pegged around 800,000 which would drop it to 7th largest Canadian city these days.

Yeah, right

[CGII]

Chicago's NW is still super Polish in some parts.

[pdxtex]

so if i were a young creative type who just finished college in france someplace, would i be talking about moving to london instead of paris? or would i be sending resumes out all over the country? what are young person migration patterns like in europe anyway? move where you want then find a job? or move where ever a job is offered?

[Nouvellecosse]

Originally Posted by Kingofthehill

Yeah, right

He's referring to the number of Canadian living there, not the city's population.

(I assume that's what you're misunderstanding since I can't see any other reason to roll your eyes at it.)

[LtBk]

Originally Posted by mousquet

Lots of young French people fascinated by London though, anyone in France knows it's an undeniable fact. Of course London enjoys its language that's worldwide spread - a huge advantage - and its reputation of dynamism and friendly atmosphere, while people have a feeling of suffering from a lack of opportunities in France. Yet as far as Paris goes, its economy's bigger than London's for now but all other cities throughout the country are far slower.

I think our problems are easily recognizable: words like consensus (general agreement) decentralization and flexibility are still very misunderstood in France, which causes many stupid difficulties. There's no future for stubborn people in this world and given the stubborn way the French act all the time, it seems almost a miracle that France is still among the most advanced nations. Hopefully our new national administration will be astute enough to allow some improvement in the overall mentality. I'm pretty sure there's a massive potential wasted in this country for the only reason that people are completely unable to trust one another. A couple of examples:

• entrepreneurs (especially the most successful) are usually taken for selfish bastards that would treat people like their slaves.
• public workers are willingly called lazy butts paid for doing nothing.
• unemployed people from poor ghettos are treated like scum, discriminated, including those college-educated.
• emerging countries such as China are seen by most as a terrible threat.

And it goes like that on and on. No wonder some want to leave the country, for things are obviously much harder, bringing rough frustrations in that kind of pitiful atmosphere.


Oh well, in short London gets a significant number of French yuppies whereas France's countrysides get loads of retired British.

I wouldn't call the 5th largest economy in the world a miracle. They must have done a couple of things right. If the French are as stubborn as you say they are, than France would be still second rate country or something.

[montréaliste]

During the last presidential election in France, the numbers came up about how many french nationals were registered to vote in Montreal; 44,000. I think New York's was 23,000? The french community here is North America's largest expat of any city. I don't know what the actual numbers are outside the registered voters, but it is certainly quite impressive. There are a lot of french immigrants coming to Quebec these past few years and a stronger presence of french corporations establishing North American roots here.

[Crawford]

This is a stupid article. There are tons of Parisians in London for the same reason there are tons of Londoners in Paris.

These are two huge global cities within close proximity, and with strong economic and social links. Everywhere you go in Paris, there are Brits. Some are tourists, some live there.

There are tons of Londoners in New York, and vice versa. There are tons of New Yorkers in LA, and vice versa. These trends don't speak to relative economic cycles.

[Kingofthehill]

Originally Posted by Nouvellecosse

He's referring to the number of Canadian living there, not the city's population.

(I assume that's what you're misunderstanding since I can't see any other reason to roll your eyes at it.)

LA has roughly 3.8 million people; of those, some 1.9 million identify as white. By contrast, the entire state of California has roughly 1.2 million Filipinos and 1.1 million Chinese. Do you realize how commonplace and ubiquitous Canadians would be if they comprised some 800,000 people here?

[Greavsie]

what a stupid article of course these two cities have a great exchange they are neighboring countries.

[wisla_krakow]

Originally Posted by Kingofthehill

LA has roughly 3.8 million people; of those, some 1.9 million identify as white. By contrast, the entire state of California has roughly 1.2 million Filipinos and 1.1 million Chinese. Do you realize how commonplace and ubiquitous Canadians would be if they comprised some 800,000 people here?

maybe, MAYBE, 800,000 of ~13 million. but, even that seems like a stretch.

[LMich]

Originally Posted by Ch.G, Ch.G

I remember someone posting a similar article a couple of years ago...

I remember that, too. I seem to remember the "facts" in it being thoroughly debunked, too.

[sofresh808]

Originally Posted by wisla_krakow

maybe, MAYBE, 800,000 of ~13 million. but, even that seems like a stretch.

According to the 2000 Census there were 820,771 immigrants from Canada total in the US, with 141,181 in California.

http://www.migrationinformation.org/...lay.cfm?ID=244