Asylum: 29,000 Cases Unresolved Since 2007

 

Video: Asylum Seeker Has To Beg To Survive

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By Tom Parmenter, Sky News Correspondent

Failings in the UK's asylum system have led to an "extremely concerning" backlog of cases - with the Home Office accused of being in chaos over immigration.

Some 11,000 asylum seekers have been waiting since 2007 to be told whether they can stay in the country.
In total there are 29,000 cases waiting to be resolved, according to a damning report.
Margaret Hodge MP, chair of the Public Accounts Committee, said: "To make matters worse, the department is also failing to meet its targets for dealing with newer claims, so it is now creating another backlog for itself.
"The number of claims awaiting an initial decision was up 70% to 16,273 in the first three months of 2014 compared to the same period last year.

 

Video: Asylum Process System In Chaos

"It is deeply worrying that the Home Office is not tracking those people whose applications have been rejected to ensure that they are removed from the UK."
The report said there are 175,000 people whose applications to stay in the UK have been rejected and are still awaiting removal.
The Government scrapped the UK Border Agency last year as part of major reforms.
One asylum seeker has told Sky News she feels mentally "tortured" after being left in limbo.
Her case has been repeatedly delayed and nine months after applying for asylum the Ugandan woman still has not been given a proper interview about her request.
Fearing further delays to her claim, she asked only to be known as "Namusoke" and explained to Sky News: "I feel tortured here in the UK, I feel depressed, stressed and traumatised, so I really feel bad because I can't help nothing for myself.
"I'm a beggar, which I was not born to do."

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The woman is fleeing persecution in her homeland due to the fact she is a lesbian - homosexuality is deemed illegal in Uganda.
Immigration and Security Minister James Brokenshire said: "The immigration system we inherited was totally dysfunctional.
"Turning around years of mismanagement has taken time, but it is now well under way.
"We have reformed visa routes to make them more resistant to fraud and cancelled failing contracts; and we are addressing the backlogs we inherited."
Shadow Home Secretary Yvette Cooper said: "This report lays bare how Theresa May and David Cameron are presiding over one failure after another in our immigration system."
The Refugee Council's head of advocacy, Lisa Doyle, said: "It's extremely concerning that so many people are still waiting for a decision on their asylum claim, years after first applying."
On Tuesday the mayor of Calais said Britain's benefits system had become a magnet for asylum seekers making their way across the English Channel from France - and that many are "prepared to die" to make the journey.