Government ‘set to miss’ removals targets
The Home Office is likely to miss its target on removing failed asylum seekers, according to a report from the government spending watchdog.
Between 155,000 and 283,500 failed asylum applicants who should have been removed were still in the UK in May 2004, the National Audit Office (NAO) finds.
The government aims to remove more failed applicants every month than there are unsuccessful applications in order to clear the backlog of removals.
But the NAO finds that while removals increased by 35 per cent between 2000 and 2004, the overall number in the decade up to May 2004 was just 79,500 out of 363,000.
Many of these people will now have been granted leave to remain in the UK because they have dependents or are from countries which have since joined the European Union, it notes.
“The integrity of the asylum system depends in part on returning failed applicants to their home country in a timely fashion,” said NAO chief Sir John Bourn.
He added: “The Immigration and Nationality Directorate has made progress but needs to do a better job to track and manage cases and do more to encourage failed asylum applicants to return home voluntarily.
“Detaining failed applicants increases the likelihood of successful removal, but it is expensive and more efficient use could be made of such facilities.”
The cost of the asylum seeker removal system is considerable – in 2003-4, the directorate spent £300 million on removals, an increase of 60 per cent on two years previously, while a further £308 million was spent supporting those who remained in the UK.
The NAO recommends that more emphasis be placed on getting failed applicants to return to their home countries voluntarily, estimating that nearly £10 million could be saved for every 1,000 applicants choosing this option.
While relations with foreign embassies have improved in obtaining the passports and identity papers necessary to remove failed asylum seekers, the NAO says “further improvements are possible” to cut delays.
In addition, the watchdog finds that poor communication between application, support and enforcement processes slowed down removals, although it notes action is being taken on this issue.
The recent re-tendering of contracts with companies responsible for escorting failed applicants out of the country should also improve the situation, the NAO says.
