UK asylum chaos as appeals backlog explodes past 70,000

UK asylum chaos meltdown as appeals backlog explodes past 70,000

Britain’s asylum chaos has lurched into an even deeper crisis, with shocking new figures showing the appeals backlog has blown past 69,000 cases — double what it was this time last year — and now bigger than the backlog for initial decisions for the first time ever.

The Ministry of Justice data is a grim indictment of Britain’s broken border system: a 240% surge in new appeals over the summer, a refusal rate so high it immediately funnels rejected applicants into legal challenges, and a system that continues to keep tens of thousands housed in taxpayer-funded hotels at eye-watering cost.

Roughly 70% of rejected asylum seekers appeal, meaning thousands who were denied sanctuary are still entitled to government support. With 69,670 appeals choking the courts and only 62,171 initial claims waiting in the Home Office queue, the Government has crossed a bleak milestone: the appeals system is now the biggest bottleneck in the entire structure.

Experts say tribunal capacity is nowhere near large enough to cope. Dr Mihnea Cuibus of Oxford’s Migration Observatory warned that while ministers boast they’ve cut initial-decision backlogs, their “poor-quality decisions” are simply dumping people straight into a fresh crisis of their own making.

The Refugee Council estimates the true number trapped in appeal limbo is nearer 90,000 men, women and children, many living for months or years in unsuitable hotels while waiting for the Home Office to fix its mess.

Despite Labour promising to end hotel use by 2029, the numbers are going up, not down — with 36,273 people in hotel accommodation as of September, even higher than last year.

Meanwhile, plans to slash appeal rights to a single challenge and replace judges with “adjudicators” are raising red flags among legal experts who say the system is already buckling and any shortcuts will likely make things worse.

Key Takeaways

• Appeals backlog hits a record 69,670 cases — now bigger than initial-decision backlog for the first time ever.

• Around 90,000 people are stuck in hotel limbo as rejected claims surge into the courts.

• Government boasts of clearing old backlogs ring hollow as experts warn poor decisions are simply creating new ones.

SOURCE : EXPRESS