Asylum backlog gone, says PM, but critics disagree – BBC News

The government says it has cleared the asylum backlog, but critics have accused it of manipulating the figures.

Tens of thousands of migrants have been staying in hotels while they await a decision on their refugee status claim.

One of Rishi Sunak’s key pledges was to process 92,000 “legacy” applications by the end of 2023.

The home secretary says “every single one” of those applications – anyone who applied before 28 June 2022 – have been processed.

This is due to a “tenfold increase in the pace at which we complete the processing,” James Cleverly said.

The government enhanced the asylum system by adding “more people,” refining “processes,” and implementing “real accountability,” Mr Cleverly said.

Speaking on BBC Radio 4’s Today programme, Mr Cleverly admitted there are small number of “outstanding” cases where “there are complications” including security concerns around the asylum seekers.

But Labour say the government is making false claims about hitting the target.

The Home Office said more than 112,000 asylum cases were processed by officials last year, exceeding the PM’s commitment.

It says in one four-week period from 20 November to 17 December 2023, there were 20,481 initial asylum decisions made – more than the number of asylum decisions made in the whole of 2021.

The prime minister said the department’s efforts were “saving the taxpayer millions of pounds in expensive hotel costs, reducing strain on public services and ensuring the most vulnerable receive the right support”.

But critics – including some Tory MPs – dispute these claims and suggest that Downing Street is massaging the statistics.

Legacy cases refer only to people in the asylum system on 28 June 2022, the day when new asylum rules came into force.

All of those cases have been reviewed but not all have been resolved – 4,500 have been reclassified as “complex”.

The Home Office says such cases typically involve asylum seekers presenting as children – age verification, serious medical issues or checks on suspected convictions can be among the issues.

Around 100,000 people whose applications were made after June 2022 are still in the system and many of them remain in hotels.

Stephen Kinnock, Labour’s shadow immigration minister, said the government’s claims were “false” and the asylum backlog had “rocketed” under the Tories.

“No slicing or renaming the figures can disguise that fact,” he said.

“Over 4,000 claims are unresolved and a disturbing 17,000 asylum seekers have simply been ‘withdrawn’ by the Tories from this legacy backlog, with ministers seeming to have no idea where they are and whether they are reapplying or disappearing into the underground economy.”

In January last year, the PM outlined five key priorities for the year – stopping boats bringing people across the English Channel was one of them.

The government also said that in 2023 it had: