UK economy bears £4 billion cost as non-native species soar 45% since 2010
Research recently published by Biological Invasions magazine has revealed the total cost to the UK economy from invasive non-native species is £4,014 million. This figure represents a 45% increase in comparable costs since 2010, with most estimated costs increasing more than inflation.
The number of introduced non-native species continues to increase throughout the world, with variations in introduction rates between species types. Research has suggested there were 3,224 non-native species in Great Britain in 2019, with an estimated 10 – 12 new non-native species becoming established every year in Great Britain.
The effect of the non-native species varies widely between different sectors of the economies, with the largest fraction of costs being allocated to agriculture (57.8%), forestry (25.2%), construction, development and infrastructure (5%), and tourism and recreation (2.7%).
As the table below highlights, the costs associated with the management of these species varies widely.
| Species |
England | Scotland | Wales | Northern Ireland | UK |
| Ash dieback | £556.4 | £120.3 | £125.9 | £80.9 | £883.5 |
| Japanese Knotweed | £207.4 | £21.8 | £11.2 | £6.0 | £246.5 |
| Rabbit | £88.9 | £38.1 | £39.7 | £3.0 | £169.7 |
| Rats and mice | £61.0 | £8.4 | £5.0 | £10.0 | £84.4 |
| Cockroaches | £53.4 | £6.3 | £8.2 | £1.9 | £69.8 |
| Deer | £47.7 | £9.8 | £4.6 | £0.8 | £62.9 |
| Grey squirrel | £32.0 | £1.1 | £1.1 | £2.5 | £40.6 |
| Varroa mite | £10.7 | £5.4 | £5.4 | £1.0 | £22.5 |
| Box tree moth | £15.4 | £0.0 | £0.0 | £0.0 | £15.4 |
| Green spruce aphid | £1.4 | £10.3 | £2.4 | £0.5 | £14.5 |
| Zebra mussel | £11.2 | £0.2 | £0.1 | £0.6 | £12.0 |
| Slipper limpet | £5.0 | £0.2 | £2.7 | £0.0 | £7.9 |
| House mouse control | £5.4 | £0.8 | £0.0 | £0.0 | £6.3 |
| Rhododendron | £2.2 | £3.1 | £0.7 | £0.2 | £6.2 |
| Signal crayfish | £3.7 | £0.6 | £1.2 | £0.0 | £5.5 |
| Phythophthora ramorum | £0.7 | £.5 | £1.9 | £0.0 | £4.2 |
| Geese and swans | £2.8 | £0.4 | £0.8 | £0.0 | £3.9 |
| Hydrocotyle ranunculoides | £3.3 | £0.0 | £0.1 | £0.1 | £3.4 |
| Killer shrimp | £2.4 | £0.0 | £0.4 | £0.0 | £2.9 |
| Oak processionary moth | £1.9 | £0.0 | £0.0 | £0.0 | £1.9 |
| Giant hogweed | £0.7 | £0.2 | £0.4 | £0.0 | £1.4 |
| Buddleia | £0.4 | £0.6 | £0.4 | £0.0 | £1.4 |
| Mink | £0.6 | £0.1 | £0.2 | £0.0 | £0.9 |
| Edible dormouse | £0.4 | £0.0 | £0.0 | £0.0 | £0.4 |
| Dendroctonus micans | £0.1 | £0.3 | £0.0 | £0.0 | £0.4 |
Tackling invasive non-native species is a key component to achieving the UK Government’s aims under the 25-year Environment Plan. However, given the limited resources available to address invasive non-native species, it is important to identify and quantify the impacts to enable prioritisation of resources.
Further reading
An updated assessment of the direct costs of invasive non-native species to the United Kingdom
