House of Commons - Public Accounts

Select Committee on Public Accounts Fourth Report

1 Matching decision-making capacity to the number of applications

1. The number of people seeking asylum in the United Kingdom stood at the highest recorded levels between 1999 and 2002, before almost halving in 2003. The high levels of applications led to a large backlog of cases awaiting an initial decision and subsequently to an increasing volume of appeals. At its peak, in 1999, the number of applications outstanding in the system stood at 129,000 (Figure 2). At the time of our previous examination, in 2000, the Home Office had been unable to predict when the backlogs of applications would be cleared, and the backlogs have persisted. In June 2004, however, the Directorate forecast that the number of applications outstanding at the initial stage would be reduced to "work-in-progress" levels by the end of 2004. The Appellate Authority's forecast for its work-in-progress at the end of 2004 was for between 24,000 and 27,000 cases.[3]Figure 2: Undecided asylum applications and appeals, 1995-2003

The backlog of asylum applications and appeals peaked in 1999 at 129,000 cases, and stood at over 60,000 cases in December 2003

Notes

1. Applications outstanding includes some cases that were being worked. It excludes secondary casework such as the Directorate's reconsideration of flawed initial decisions. Numbers of applications outstanding before 2000 are not directly comparable with later years because methods of collecting data were less reliable in earlier years.

2. Appeals outstanding includes some appeals that have been listed for hearing or heard but not decided. The backlog of appeals prior to 2000 may be under-stated owing to incomplete information at the Directorate.

Source: National Audit Office analysis of Home Office asylum statistics

2. Applicants are not usually allowed to work while they are awaiting a decision on their claim but they can apply for financial support and accommodation while their case is considered. In 2002-03 the average cost of processing an application at the initial decision stage, including support costs, was estimated as £3,380, and the average cost of an appeal to adjudication stage was estimated at £4,520. Cases can become more complex to resolve the longer they are in the system. For example the applicants' dependants may arrive, and the political situation in the country of origin may alter. If subsequently refused asylum, it becomes more difficult for the applicants to leave and for the Directorate to remove them.[4]

3. The National Audit Office estimated that around £500 million, mainly support and accommodation costs, could have been saved if sufficient capacity had been in place in 1999 and 2000 to maintain outstanding applications at work-in-progress levels, although they also recognised the practical issues to be overcome in deploying sufficient staff and infrastructure. The Home Office acknowledged that it had not anticipated the rise in applications in 1999 and 2000, and that it did not have sufficient trained personnel available. This situation had been exacerbated by the failed implementation of a new computer system considered in our earlier report.[5] The Directorate had increased the number of caseworkers from 355 in August 2000 to 769 in February 2001, and the Appellate Authority had increased court room capacity and the number of adjudicators. The Home Office was now working with the Foreign Office and the Department for Constitutional Affairs to better predict the volume of applications likely to be received from different countries and to take action to anticipate these changes. The Department for Constitutional Affairs also believed that more effective planning systems were now in place.[6]

4. Having increased the number of caseworkers dealing with applications to 769 in February 2001, the Directorate then decided to redeploy some staff working on applications to removing failed applicants. The National Audit Office estimated that had the staff been left in place for a further six months, the backlog at the initial stage would have been almost cleared and estimated costs of around £200 million (part of, not additional to the £500 million) could have been avoided. The caseworkers would then have been available for redeployment. The Home Office considered that the obligation to support families up to the point of removal would have reduced such savings. The Directorate also estimated that approximately £50 million had been saved on asylum support costs by increasing the number of family removals as a result of the redeployment of the staff and that further savings may have arisen from deterring unfounded applications as a result.[7]

5. The Directorate has continuing commitments under fixed-term contracts agreed with landlords to pay for accommodation for asylum seekers despite reductions in the numbers. As the number of applicants has fallen, homes previously used to accommodate asylum applicants have fallen empty. The Home Office explained that to avoid paying spot market prices for accommodation, it had signed longer term contracts. The reduction in asylum intake and backlogs had, however, occurred more quickly than it had expected, and it was now renegotiating the contracts to help reduce costs.[8]

6. The Directorate and Appellate Authority are now dealing with a rise in the number of people seeking to renew their permission for short-term protection. Short-term protection is granted for a limited period of time to those unsuccessful asylum applicants who have a need for international protection or have other compelling reasons for not being removed. Until 2003, applicants gaining protection were often granted four years Exceptional Leave to Remain after which they would, upon application, usually be granted indefinite leave to remain. Since April 2003, the Directorate's normal policy had been to grant initial protection for no more than three years and to grant further leave (whether limited or indefinite) only where an applicant still qualified for such leave at the time of their subsequent application. The Directorate recognised that the change in policy would place new demands on its own resources and on the appeal process. Three teams of case workers were processing such applications and this number would be doubled. Less pressure from new asylum applications would enable it to manage the additional workload.[9]

7. The Directorate had sought to expand its removal capacity to deal with the number of failed applicants coming through the system. The number of removals increased from around 7,500 in 1999 to 17,000 in 2003. The Home Office acknowledged, however, that the number removed was significantly lower than the number refused asylum. Some countries of origin were reluctant to provide the necessary documentation to enable failed applicants to return and some applicants concealed their real identity. The Directorate had opened discussions with a number of countries to improve the arrangements for obtaining documentation. Failed applicants might also access services to which they are no longer entitled, for example education services, and therefore had less of an incentive to leave voluntarily.[10]

3 7^th Report from the Committee of Public Accounts, Home Office: The Immigration and Nationality Directorate's Casework Programme (HC 130, Session 1999-2000), para 6(i); C&AG's Report, para 3.4, Figures 3 and 14 Back

4 C&AG's Report, paras 7, 3.10 Back

5 7^th Report from the Committee of Public Accounts, Home Office: The Immigration and Nationality Directorate's Casework Programme (HC 130, Session 1999-2000) Back



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