MPs warn over failed asylum seekers

Prioritising the deportation of foreign national prisoners is leading to a reduction in the number of failed asylum seekers being removed from the UK, MPs have warned.

They said by putting more emphasis on removing convicted criminals, the Home Office has reduced the detention space available to house those whose applications for asylum have failed.

While a new programme for managing applications had brought improvements, the process had "some way to go" in its aim to reach an initial decision in 80% of cases within two months and concluding cases within six months.

The Commons Public Accounts Committee said it is important to ensure enough detention spaces are available for failed asylum seekers so they can be "removed from the UK expeditiously once their case is decided". But there will not be the 4,000 spaces the Home Office says it needs until at least 2013.

In its latest report, the committee calls on the department to review all the cases of foreign national prisoners at the beginning of their sentences so they can be immediately be deported once they are released.

Tory chairman of the committee Edward Leigh said: "Giving priority to the removal of foreign national prisoners has reduced the amount of detention space available for failed asylum applicants. The result is that few failed asylum applicants are yet being removed from the UK under the new asylum model.

"The Home Office is certainly finding it difficult to achieve the tipping point, where more failed applicants are removed than there are unfounded applications.

"In order to free up detention spaces, the Home Office must review all foreign national prisoner cases at the start of their sentences, to prepare for the immediate removal of those recommended for deportation on their release from custody.

"The enforced removal of a failed asylum applicant is also often made very difficult by obstacles outside the Home Office's control. The department needs to work with the courts, foreign governments and other bodies to make the process of enforced removal more tractable."

Mr Leigh said the new programme for managing applications, called the new asylum model, had brought a "lot of improvements to the management of new cases". But the process of reaching decisions on whether to grant asylum is still too slow, he warned.