The population explosion is equivalent to a new household every six minutes for the next 22 years. It means immigration is now the single biggest factor in the expansion of families across the country, accounting for four out of 10 new households. The trend emerged in a forecast on living arrangements in England between 2006 and 2031 published by the Department for Communities and Local Government. Critics warned of the severe pressure on housing across the country as a result.

Whitehall figures showed that 6.3million new households will be set up during the 25-year period. Of that total, 2.5million will be as a direct result of immigration. The trend was identified through analysis of the Whitehall statistics by think tank Migrationwatch. Chairman Sir Andrew Green said: “Yet again the Government have tried to bury the true picture in the middle of a 17-page statistical release but they cannot conceal the fact that immigration will have a massive impact on housing demand and therefore on our whole quality of life and our environment.

“It is time that the Government faced up to the facts and brought immigration under control instead of seeking to camouflage the true position.”

The figures show an extra 99,000 households every year will be set up in England as a direct result of net immigration.

The biggest expansion will occur in the North-east, with 33 per cent, Yorkshire and the Humber (30 per cent) and the East Midlands (21 per cent). The West Midlands and East of England will see a 16 per cent increase while the South-east and South-west will see rises of 10 per cent.

Tory immigration spokesman Damian Green said: “This is yet more evidence that we need an explicit annual limit on the number of people coming to work here. The Government has let immigration run out of control for too long.” Former Labour minister Frank Field and senior Tory backbencher Nicholas Soames, co-chairmen of the Commons Cross Party Group on Balanced Mig­ration, issued a joint statement.

They said: “These new housing projections show in a clear and practical way the huge impact of the present extremely high levels of immig­ration on every aspect of our ­society. “The Government must take serious steps to bring immigration into balance with emigration otherwise our population will climb to 7million and beyond.

“How much longer can the Government remain in denial, as one set of statistics after another reveal that its policies are woefully inadequate?” A spokesman for the Department of Communities and Local Government said: “The figures show the main drivers behind the increase in the number of households are people living alone and an ageing population, as well as migration.