Census details released today appear to show a disturbing picture for some parts of the Isle of Man, though the population is above 80,000 overall.

Ramsey's population has dropped from 7,322 five years ago to 7,309.

At the same time Douglas has risen by something approaching 1,000.

Beth Espey reports (text of attached audio file):

The other big conurbation, Onchan, is showed to have risen by over 300 as you might expect, but the figures add weight to Ramsey's demands for government investment.

Another drop is recorded in Port St Mary, where residents pay the highest rates on the Island. A falling population and little industrial rates to draw on won't necessarily help the commissioners find their way back to the land of the profit. Port Erin's population has risen by over 200.

Jurby is down by about 20. Big building planned there in the next few years should reverse that trend. And Patrick is down and German down. This may be because folk are being sucked in to the new housing at Ballawattleworth.

The Manx born percentage is given as 47.6%, that's down from 48% five years ago.
The "English born" percentage is 37.2%.

The category termed 'other EU countries' has doubled to 1,428 while 'the rest of the world' has gone up 1,000 to 3,434.

(Picture: Market Square, Ramsey).