Government's Asylum Figures Reveal Unresolved Backlog
Despite the UK government's declaration of fulfilling Prime Minister Rishi Sunak's promise to eradicate the old asylum application backlog, official data indicates that over 4,500 claims still await initial decisions.
These unresolved cases, part of the legacy defined as applications submitted before June 28, 2022, contradict Sunak's claim and commitment to address all initial decisions by the end of 2023.
Home Secretary James Cleverly maintains that the backlog has been addressed, attributing the remaining cases to security or discrepancy issues. However, the opposition's Shadow Home Secretary, Yvette Cooper, disputes the government's assertion of clearing the backlog.
The Home Office statistics for 2023 confirm improvements, with over 112,000 initial asylum decisions processed, compared to just under 32,000 in 2022.
Although the government increased the asylum casework staff, the 51,469 grants of asylum and the tripling of "non-substantive decisions" from the previous year face criticism, notably from Nigel Farage.
Furthermore, while the number of older cases has decreased, the "flow backlog"—newer applications since June 2022—has swollen to 94,062, awaiting initial decisions and outstripping the legacy backlog numbers at the start of the prime minister's tenure.
Home Secretary James Cleverly maintains that the backlog has been addressed, attributing the remaining cases to security or discrepancy issues. However, the opposition's Shadow Home Secretary, Yvette Cooper, disputes the government's assertion of clearing the backlog.
The Home Office statistics for 2023 confirm improvements, with over 112,000 initial asylum decisions processed, compared to just under 32,000 in 2022.
Although the government increased the asylum casework staff, the 51,469 grants of asylum and the tripling of "non-substantive decisions" from the previous year face criticism, notably from Nigel Farage.
Furthermore, while the number of older cases has decreased, the "flow backlog"—newer applications since June 2022—has swollen to 94,062, awaiting initial decisions and outstripping the legacy backlog numbers at the start of the prime minister's tenure.
