Today, the Public Accounts Committee published its report into the UK border and Immigration system. According to the report the UK Visas and Immigration (UKVI)Â has failed to get a grip on the long-standing problem of asylum backlogs with older cases remaining unresolved and the number of newer cases awaiting a decision increasing. An estimated 29,000 asylum applications dating back to 2007 have not been resolved.
Margaret Hodge: UKBA’s Performance in dealing with Backlog Cases was not good enough
According to the Public Accounts Committee report:
- 11,000 asylum applicants have not received an initial decision on their immigration status in the UK;
- The Home Office has lost contact with 50,000 people have been refused the right to stay in the UK; and
- The Home Office received 16,273 new applications in the first 3 months of 2014.
MP Margaret Hodge, Chair of the Committee of Public Accounts, today said:
“The Home Office scrapped the UK Border Agency in March 2013 partly because its performance in dealing with backlog cases was not good enough. However, the Department has also failed to get a grip on the long-standing problem of asylum backlogs, with some 29,000 applications dating back to at least 2007 remaining unresolved. In 11,000 of these cases people have not even received an initial decision on their asylum claim. 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.”
She added:
“At the end of 2013-14 there were over 175,000 people whose application to stay in the UK had been rejected, and they are placed into a migration refusal pool to await removal. The number of such cases has not been reduced over time. Some may have left the UK voluntarily, but without exit checks it is almost impossible to know. It is particularly disturbing to find that, when the Department asked Capita to check over 250,000 case records in 2012 and 2013, Capita had been unable to contact over 50,000 people listed. The Department admitted that they did not know where these 50,000 people were.”
Statement of Changes to Appeals & Deportations
From 20 October 2014 the foreign criminals and their family members will no longer have the right to appeal against deportation, nor will there be an Administrative review. However, they can make an application for leave to remain based on a protection or human rights claim for which there will continue to a right of appeal if such a claim is refused. There are consequential amendments to the Immigration Rules which delete or amend references to appeals.
Legal Advice for Illegal Migrants Contacted by Capita in the UK
Illegal migrants with strong Human Rights arguments ought to take legal advice and regularise their stay in the UK as soon as possible and before it is too late. If you have received correspondence from Capita, it is advisable that you seek immediate legal advice before enforcement action is taken against you by the Home Office.
Contact us to discuss your immigration situation and we will assess your case and provide you with options of regularising your stay.