Responding to the latest quarterly statistics released by the Home Office this morning, Jon Featonby, Chief Policy Analyst at the Refugee Council, said:

“While the Government’s measures are leading straight to a meltdown of the asylum system, desperate refugees are still coming to the UK in search of safety. The Rwanda Plan is clearly not acting as a deterrent, with over 31,079 people making dangerous journeys across the Channel in the year to March 2024.

“The majority of those have fled from war, persecution and violence in countries like Afghanistan, Sudan and Iran, but instead of getting a fair hearing on UK soil, they will be shut out of the asylum system, facing an indefinite limbo and unable to move on with their lives. We are also very concerned that the number of withdrawals remains very high, with over 24,000 claims withdrawn in the year to March 2024 instead of receiving an actual decision – amounting to 1 in 5 of all “decisions”.

“We must stop using refugees to score political points and start properly dealing with asylum applications to decide who can stay in the UK. The current system has failed, causing chaos at huge human and financial cost. The next government must put in place an approach that is fair and controlled, where each asylum claim is considered on its merit and given a decision.”