Almost 13k asylum seekers have spent over ten years in Britain waiting for cases to be resolved, shock figures show
ALMOST 13,000 asylum seekers have spent more than ten years in Britain waiting for their cases to be resolved.
The backlog is likely to have cost taxpayers billions to house, feed and clothe them.
Figures obtained by The Sun on Sunday show they are among 60,290 whose cases have been ongoing for more than three years.
Home Office figures in a Freedom of Information request show 12,994 asylum seekers had been in the UK more than ten years, as of last June.
Another 2,825 had been here for nine to ten years and 3,199 for eight to nine.
There were 4,030 whose cases had dragged on for seven to eight years and 8,117 for six to seven.
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Migrants are processed at a number of centres including Manston, Kent, and then housed at hotels or bed and breakfasts.
The Government’s hotel bill is £5.6million per day — around £2billion a year.
Alp Mehmet, chief of Migrationwatch UK, said: “If after ten years it is still not possible to make a decision, the claim is clearly pretty weak.
"Such failures are the result of dithering and indecision. It’s an absolute disgrace.”
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The asylum system is hampered by backlogs and a failure to tackle the Channel small boats crisis.
And the Government’s controversial Rwanda plan to send asylum seekers to Africa has been delayed by legal challenges.
PM Rishi Sunak has promised more staff, new rules and cooperation with French authorities.
There are around 150,000 asylum seekers awaiting a decision.
Those who make a claim cannot work, and so get a weekly allowance and accommodation.
James Roberts, of the TaxPayers’ Alliance, said: “Taxpayers are footing the bill for asylum backlogs.”
A Home Office spokesman said: “The Government is taking immediate action to bring the asylum backlog down.”