‘Bureaucratic nightmare!’ Mark White delivers verdict as asylum system in ‘absolute meltdown’

Speaking on Britain's News Channel, Mark said: "Sadly, I think this National Audit Office report is just confirming what many people suspected: we have an immigration and asylum system in absolute meltdown.

"Government departments within the Home Office are, on this issue, really not fit for purpose. There are so many backlogs that the short-term measures introduced under various ministers, intended to deal with part of the backlog, have only created further problems."

The Home and security editor pointed specifically to Rishi Sunak's 2023 initiative to clear the asylum backlog, noting that while claims were processed more rapidly, the resulting decisions lacked robustness and were easily challenged, spawning a fresh wave of appeals.

"The financial cost of this is staggering. Nearly £3.5billion a year is spent on accommodation and support, mostly in hotels and associated services, while only £45 million is spent on detention and removals it should surely be the other way around.

"We are at a stage where, whatever the will of the Government of the day, the legal system seems to conspire against it.

"That is why Sir Keir Starmer is talking today about reforms to the European Convention on Human Rights and the European Court.

"The Government could do that Labour would too, but with all its human rights lawyers. At the end of the day, it is tinkering that can still be overcome by lawyers and activists adept at finding ways around it.

"This is why, I think belatedly, the Conservatives have concluded they need to remove themselves from the ECHR altogether, draw up a UK Human Rights Bill, and deal with it that way prioritising the Government’s ability to get a grip on the migration crisis."

He added: "I would not call it incompetence outright though some parts may be.

"I don’t think it is wilful in the majority of cases; they are simply overwhelmed.

"The system is full of holes, allowing the legal fraternity representing asylum seekers to run rings around it.

"What we have is an absolute bureaucratic nightmare. The few adjudicators available are trying to make decisions on individuals, sometimes without even meeting them face to face, given the massive caseloads.

"I am not convinced the failures are deliberate in most cases, but they are clear evidence of a system that is completely overwhelmed."

The NAO's analysis paints a stark picture of systemic dysfunction, with expenditure reaching approximately £4.9billion during 2024-25 due to persistent delays and mounting case backlogs.

The watchdog examined a sample of 5,000 individuals who lodged asylum applications in January 2023.

Nearly three years on, just 35 per cent had received some form of protection such as refugee status, while only 9 per cent had been removed following rejected claims.

Most strikingly, 56 per cent of these cases remain without any final resolution.

The NAO found that 41 per cent of the sample group had their applications refused yet remained in the country, generating what the report termed "significant costs" for housing and support services.

The financial imbalance within the system is particularly striking.

Accommodation and support costs account for £3.4billion of the total expenditure, with hotel bills alone reaching £2.billion.

The NAO noted that the true cost to taxpayers remains unknown, as data on local authority spending on migrants has not been fully processed.

The Home Office defended its record, pointing to nearly 50,000 individuals without legal status who have been removed from the country.