Louis Walsh, the manager of Boyzone and X Factor judge, told one newspaper: ”We’re all absolutely devastated.” He added: ”I’m in complete shock. I was only with him on Monday at an awards ceremony. We don’t know much about what’s happened yet.

In a separate newspaper interview a close friend of the singer is reported as saying: “It looks like he went out for a few drinks, then got back, fell asleep and never woke up.”

The four remaining members of Boyzone are now due to fly to Palma.

Shane Lynch, a band member, told the News of the World: ”Me and the boys are flying out in the morning.”

A statement on Boyzone’s official website confirmed the Irish singer’s death.

It said: “Stephen tragically died yesterday whilst on holiday with his partner Andrew in Mallorca.”

“The rest of the boyz will be flying out today.”

Apart from singing with the Irish band Boyzone, Gately will be remembered for his rendition of Jesus in the touring musical Godspell.

Boyzone had 17 UK top five singles and four number one albums before splitting in 2000. They made a comeback tour in 2007, however their recent 19-date Better tour was deemed a flop as the band played to half-filled arenas.

Ever since the attack Alex has been in a coma in Palma Hospital and his condition has been described as stable but critical following an operation relieve pressure on his brain.

He was accompanied by his mother, Helen, on the flight back to the UK and is now in University Hospital of Wales in Cardiff, where staff are assessing his situation.

Police in Mallorca, meanwhile, are looking for three males in connection with the attack.

The foreign population of the Balearics has rocketed by 17.2% in just one year, according to new figures from the National Statistics Institute. The figures show that the flow of migrants to the islands remains intense, with over 32,000 foreigners and 9,000 Spaniards arriving in one year. The figures also reveal that the total population of the islands on Jan 1st 2008 was 1,072,844 with 20.7% percent of residents being of non Spanish nationality. This means that the archipelago is the autonomous area with the highest percentage of immigrants.

Germans accounted for the largest single group of immigrants with 33,208 registered, while Britons made up the second largest group with 22,055. Moroccans came in third place with 20,652 registered, followed by Italians with 14,171. Other notable populations include Argentineans, Ecuadorians and Romanians.

The town with the highest number of foreign residents is Palma (77,330), followed by Calvia, where over 33% of residents are foreign. Ibiza Town came in third place with 11,604 foreigners, or almost a quarter of its inhabitants.

16.5% of Spain’s population as a whole is made up of foreign nationals.