The Asylum Backlog - What's going on?
Just over a year ago, Rishi Sunak told Parliament he would abolish the backlog of initial asylum decisions by the end of 2023. So did he manage it?
Just over a year ago, Rishi Sunak told Parliament he would abolish the backlog of initial asylum decisions by the end of next year - 2023. So did he manage it? Was it a pledge delivered or a promise broken? Ministers insist that the part of the backlog they were referring to - asylum seekers who were waiting for a decision on their claim before June 28th 2022 - hasΒ fallen significantly, from around 100,000 cases to 4,500.Β But while the focus has been on these legacy cases, another backlog has been growing. New cases in the system now number more than 94,000 - probably around 125,000 people. So, can the government really claim to have abolished the backlog? Nick Eardley has the answers in this episode or our 5 Questions On podcast.
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