LONDON

The UK Home Office has announced the purported success in clearing its asylum backlog, citing improved efficiency in processing asylum claims.

However, critics are questioning the accuracy of the government's figures, accusing Downing Street of manipulating statistics to create a favorable narrative about its handling of asylum applications.

Government figures reveal a year-on-year decrease in the number of migrants undertaking perilous journeys across the English Channel for the first time since records began.

The provisional total arrivals for 2023 stand at 29,437, marking a 36% reduction from the record-high 45,774 crossings recorded in 2022. While this signifies a notable decline, it remains the second-highest total since the crossings began in 2018.

Tens of thousands of migrants have been residing in hotels requisitioned by the government as they await the initial decisions on their refugee status claims. Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, who pledged over a year ago to process 92,000 "legacy" applications by the end of 2023, now asserts that this commitment has been fulfilled.

"I said that this government would clear the backlog of asylum decisions by the end of 2023. That’s exactly what we’ve done. Over 112,000 cases are now cleared with a lower grant rate than last year, a key part of our plan to stop the boats," Sunak said on X.

He said that the UK government made agreements with France, Italy, Türkiye, Albania, Bulgaria, Georgia, Ethiopia and Moldova to control borders.

"And we have passed our Illegal Migration Act and introduced our Safety of Rwanda Bill, which will mean that anyone who arrives in the UK illegally will be sent back to either their home country or a safe third country, like Rwanda," he added.

In an interview on SkyNews on Tuesday, UK Home Secretary James Cleverly praised the work done by former immigration minister Robert Jenrick. Cleverly stated: "He was responsible for putting this process in place. It's an effective process, and it's done exactly what we wanted it to do by clearing that backlog."

The Home Office attributes this achievement to "increased efficiency," with officials processing more than 112,000 asylum cases last year, surpassing Sunak's initial target.

Opposition disputes claim

However, critics, including members of the Labour Party dispute these claims. They allege that Downing Street is manipulating statistics to create a favorable narrative about the government's handling of asylum applications.

Darren Jones, shadow chief secretary to the Treasury, expressed skepticism in an interview with SkyNews, stating: "They've claimed they've reduced these numbers, and they produce them a little and we welcome that. But 17,000 duplicate applicants have gone missing. What does that even mean, and what happens to those applications?"

Jones emphasized that the issue extends beyond processing applications to the challenge of returning rejected asylum seekers to their home countries. He highlighted that approximately 56,000 individuals are currently in the UK awaiting repatriation.

Shadow Immigration Minister Stephen Kinnock strongly contested the government's assertions, branding them as "false."

Kinnock emphasized that over 4,000 claims remain unresolved, and a concerning 17,000 asylum seekers have been categorized as "withdrawn" by the Tories, raising uncertainties about their whereabouts and their potential reapplications or involvement in the informal economy.

As the debate continues, approximately 100,000 individuals who submitted applications post-June 2022 are still within the asylum system, with a significant portion residing in hotels.

Sunak, who previously emphasized the priority of "stopping the boats," recently indicated that there is no definite timeline for fulfilling this commitment. This comes amid scrutiny from members of parliament and challenges in managing the ongoing migrant crisis.

The pledge to address the issue was part of Sunak's five-point agenda at the beginning of 2023. It included a commitment to enact new legislation for the swift detention and removal of individuals entering the country illegally, responding to mounting political pressure.