London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Tuesday, Jul 29, 2025

Rise in UK asylum approvals renews fears about Rwanda transfers

Rise in UK asylum approvals renews fears about Rwanda transfers

Home Office data shows majority of successful claimants arrived via small boats so may face prosecution
The proportion of asylum seekers being granted refuge in the United Kingdom has risen to a 30-year high, prompting renewed concern from refugee charities about recent changes to the system which will see many people criminalised or transferred to Rwanda.

New Home Office data shows that 75% of asylum claims in the year ending March 2022 were granted, with most claimants entering the UK via small boats or other irregular routes. This means they could face prosecution under the new Nationality and Borders Act, which was passed in April.

Dr Peter William Walsh, a senior researcher with the Migration Observatory at the University of Oxford, said: “This is a significant shift compared to a few years ago, when the majority of asylum applications were initially refused. This highlights that policies targeting asylum seekers will inevitably affect some people who would be granted refugee status if their claim was processed in the UK.”

The Home Office said the rise in approval rates was in part a consequence of Brexit, since this was the first year that officials have not been able to refuse asylum applications from people who travelled through other safe European countries before arriving in the UK. It also reflects a shift in the origin of applicants, with the majority of people now making their way from countries that typically have high approval rates, such as Syria, Eritrea and Sudan.

In the year ending March 2022, the number of refusals was roughly a third of what it was two years earlier, standing at 3,710, compared with 9,447 in March 2020. There were 55,146 asylum applications in the UK in the year to March 2022 – the highest number for any 12-month period since 2003, when the total stood at 61,343.

The increase in applications was “likely linked in part to the easing of global travel restrictions that were in place due to the Covid-19 pandemic, and to a sharp increase in small boat arrivals to the UK”, the Home Office report said.

The same data revealed that more than 1,000 Afghan nationals arrived by small boats in the first quarter of 2022, making up nearly a quarter of the small boat arrivals, suggesting that the Afghan resettlement schemes, which were launched last year after the fall of Kabul to the Taliban, are not offering enough support. Of the 4,540 people detected arriving by small boats between January and March 2022, 24% (1,094) were Afghan nationals. They represented the highest of any nationality recorded, followed by 16% who were Iranian (722) and 15% (681) Iraqi.

Enver Solomon, the chief executive of the Refugee Council, said: “This increase is the inevitable consequence of the restrictive nature of the Afghanistan resettlement schemes, for which the vast majority of Afghans are simply ineligible. The government must honour the promises they made to the people of Afghanistan by immediately ensuring the most vulnerable people in the country are able to access a safe route to the UK, so they are not forced to risk their lives in order to find safety here.”

Marley Morris, the associate director for migration with the IPPR thinktank, said: “The government has said it is giving Afghans a ‘warm welcome’, but these figures reveal that many have felt they have been left with no option but to take this dangerous route to make it to the UK. The government’s new plans in response to the Channel crossings could mean that Afghan asylum seekers will be sent to Rwanda. Contrary to the government’s claims, there are few safe routes for people forced into small boats to make it to the UK.”

The data also highlighted a backlog of about 110,000 unprocessed asylum cases, more than double the backlog at the end of March 2020. “This leaves thousands trapped in limbo, banned from working, living hand to mouth on less than £6 a day, and left not knowing what their future holds,” Solomon said.

A Home Office spokesperson said: “The UK has made one of the largest commitments to support Afghan refugees of any country, and will resettle up to 20,000 Afghan women, children and others at risk. The rise in dangerous Channel crossings is unacceptable. The Nationality and Borders Act will crack down on the evil people-smuggling gangs who are abusing our immigration laws.”
Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
France Opens Criminal Investigation into X Over Algorithm Manipulation Allegations
A family has been arrested in the UK for displaying the British flag
Mel Gibson refuses to work with Robert De Niro, saying, "Keep that woke clown away from me."
Trump Steamrolls EU in Landmark Trade Win: US–EU Trade Deal Imposes 15% Tariff on European Imports
ChatGPT CEO Sam Altman says people share personal info with ChatGPT but don’t know chats can be used as court evidence in legal cases.
The British propaganda channel BBC News lies again.
Deputy attorney general's second day of meeting with Ghislaine Maxwell has concluded
Controversial March in Switzerland Features Men Dressed in Nazi Uniforms
Politics is a good business: Barack Obama’s Reported Net Worth Growth, 1990–2025
Thai Civilian Death Toll Rises to 12 in Cambodian Cross-Border Attacks
TSUNAMI: Trump Just Crossed the Rubicon—And There’s No Turning Back
Over 120 Criminal Cases Dismissed in Boston Amid Public Defender Shortage
UN's Top Court Declares Environmental Protection a Legal Obligation Under International Law
"Crazy Thing": OpenAI's Sam Altman Warns Of AI Voice Fraud Crisis In Banking
The Podcaster Who Accidentally Revealed He Earns Over $10 Million a Year
Trump Announces $550 Billion Japanese Investment and New Trade Agreements with Indonesia and the Philippines
US Treasury Secretary Calls for Institutional Review of Federal Reserve Amid AI‑Driven Growth Expectations
UK Government Considers Dropping Demand for Apple Encryption Backdoor
Severe Flooding in South Korea Claims Lives Amid Ongoing Rescue Operations
Japanese Man Discovers Family Connection Through DNA Testing After Decades of Separation
Russia Signals Openness to Ukraine Peace Talks Amid Escalating Drone Warfare
Switzerland Implements Ban on Mammography Screening
Japanese Prime Minister Vows to Stay After Coalition Loses Upper House Majority
Pogacar Extends Dominance with Stage Fifteen Triumph at Tour de France
CEO Resigns Amid Controversy Over Relationship with HR Executive
Man Dies After Being Pulled Into MRI Machine Due to Metal Chain in New York Clinic
NVIDIA Achieves $4 Trillion Valuation Amid AI Demand
US Revokes Visas of Brazilian Corrupted Judges Amid Fake Bolsonaro Investigation
U.S. Congress Approves Rescissions Act Cutting Federal Funding for NPR and PBS
North Korea Restricts Foreign Tourist Access to New Seaside Resort
Brazil's Supreme Court Imposes Radical Restrictions on Former President Bolsonaro
Centrist Criticism of von der Leyen Resurfaces as she Survives EU Confidence Vote
Judge Criticizes DOJ Over Secrecy in Dropping Charges Against Gang Leader
Apple Closes $16.5 Billion Tax Dispute With Ireland
Von der Leyen Faces Setback Over €2 Trillion EU Budget Proposal
UK and Germany Collaborate on Global Military Equipment Sales
Trump Plans Over 10% Tariffs on African and Caribbean Nations
Flying Taxi CEO Reclaims Billionaire Status After Stock Surge
Epstein Files Deepen Republican Party Divide
Zuckerberg Faces $8 Billion Privacy Lawsuit From Meta Shareholders
FIFA Pressured to Rethink World Cup Calendar Due to Climate Change
SpaceX Nears $400 Billion Valuation With New Share Sale
Microsoft, US Lab to Use AI for Faster Nuclear Plant Licensing
Trump Walks Back Talk of Firing Fed Chair Jerome Powell
Zelensky Reshuffles Cabinet to Win Support at Home and in Washington
"Can You Hit Moscow?" Trump Asked Zelensky To Make Putin "Feel The Pain"
Irish Tech Worker Detained 100 days by US Authorities for Overstaying Visa
Dimon Warns on Fed Independence as Trump Administration Eyes Powell’s Succession
Church of England Removes 1991 Sexuality Guidelines from Clergy Selection
Superman Franchise Achieves Success with Latest Release
×