The Channel migrant crisis has overwhelmed the UK's asylum system (Image: Getty)
Britain’s asylum crisis has cost taxpayers a staggering ￡5 billion in the past year, heaping more pressure on ministers to stop small boat crossings.
The Home Office splurged ￡5.38bn on accommodation and support for asylum seekers in the year to June 2024 – up ￡1.43bn from the year before.
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Ministers were on Thursday under pressure to “end the madness”, with pensioners set to be clobbered this Winter by the axing of the winter fuel payments and farmers facing financial ruin due to tax hikes.
Reform UK leader Nigel Farage said: “The asylum bill has gone up by 36% in one year to ￡5.38 billion.
A migrant boat leaves for Britain (Image: Getty)
“That doesn’t even include the daily cost of what is happening in the English Channel with drones, with Border Force and with the massive processing centre at Manston.
“I don’t know what the true figure is.
“But it wouldn’t be difficult to work out that it would be several multiples of what has been taken away from Britain’s pensioners in terms of their winter fuel allowance, and the hit that will be taken by British farmers.
“But then, why would they matter? They’re British. They seem to always be at the back of the queue.”
Robert Bates, Research Director at the Centre for Migration control said: “Whilst the Labour Party are inflicting hardship on millions of Brits, they are far too happy to oversee a skyrocketing illegal migration budget.
“Pensioners are set to freeze and our countryside is to be sold off, in order to cover the costs of this eye watering bill.
“This is only the tip of the iceberg. Current plans will see the British public have to spend billions more in welfare for refugees and legal aid for illegal migrants seeking asylum.
“Politicians prefer to side with anyone but the British public.
“Starmer has broken his promise to the electorate that he would get this crisis under control and is instead reopening migrant hotels, granting amnesty to illegal migrants, and sending the world a clear message that Britain is a walkover.
“We have had enough of our country being turned into a laughing stock. Ministers need to get a grip and end the madness.”
Home Office spending on asylum rose by ￡1.43 billion, up 36% from ￡3.95 billion in 2022/23 to ￡5.38 billion in 2023/24.
It is more than four times the equivalent figure for 2020/21 (￡1.34 billion) and nearly 12 times the total a decade ago in 2013/14 (￡0.45 billion).
The total covers all Home Office asylum costs, including direct cash support and accommodation, plus wider staffing and other related migration and border activity.
The figure does not include the cost of operations responding to Channel crossings, intercepting migrants as they make the journey to the UK.
New figures, published by the Home Office, also revealed the number of migrants living in hotels has increased since Labour came to power.
Some 29,585 asylum seekers were staying in taxpayer-funded hotel rooms, as of June 30.
But this has increased to 35,651, it has emerged.
Shadow Home Secretary Chris Philp told the Daily Express: “These numbers are staggeringly high.
“Labour promised to end hotel use for asylum seekers, most of whom entered the country illegally.
“But data out today shows that they have added 6,000 more in hotels in their first three months.
“Small boats crossings are up by 23% since the election – because Labour cancelled the Rwanda deterrent before it had even started.
“An urgent new approach is needed.”
A total of 133,409 people were waiting for an initial decision on an asylum application in the UK at the end of September 2024.
This is up 12% from 118,882 at the end of June 2024, but down year on year by 19% from 165,411 at the end of September 2023.
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The number peaked at 175,457 at the end of June 2023, which was the highest figure since current records began in 2010.
The number of people waiting more than six months for an initial decision stood at 83,888 at the end of September, up from 76,268 at the end of June, but down year-on-year by 33% from 124,461.
Enver Solomon, Chief Executive of the Refugee Council, said: “The latest statistics show that the new Government has got asylum decision making going again, after it had ground to a halt in the months before the general election.
“But significant reforms are still needed to cut the backlog of cases and the resulting hotel costs.
“More asylum interviews took place in August than any month in the last backlog clearance exercise and the number of decisions made in September was double the number made in June.
“This is welcome news because making fair decisions about who can stay in the UK and who cannot will help restore public confidence in the system.”
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But challenged over when Labour would stop using hotels for asylum seekers, migration minister Seema Malhotra said hotels would shut only as the Government “return those who have no right to be here".
Acknowledging that the Labour Government had closed seven hotels but opened 14, she said: "We absolutely want to see hotels closed and what we know, what your listeners will also know, is we do have to house destitute asylum seekers.
"But this has been an overall fall since 400 hotels were being used at the peak."