Surge in asylum claims forces £1bn Treasury handout

Gordon Brown, the Chancellor, approved emergency payments yesterday of nearly £1bn to cover the soaring cost of the asylum crisis.

The number of people seeking refuge in Britain reached a record 110,700 last year. Applications for asylum leapt by 20 per cent, while the total across the European Union fell.

The new figures, which David Blunkett, the Home Secretary, conceded were "bad news", put fresh political and financial pressure on the Government. Fears are also growing that war in Iraq could lead to a renewed surge of refugees heading to this country.

The Treasury announced a £785m grant to the Home Office, nearly doubling the budget of the Immigration and Nationality Directorate. About £600m will support extra asylum-seekers, with £185m allocated to administrative costs. Mr Brown also approved a £160m payment to the Lord Chancellor's Department.

Announcing the refugee figures yesterday, Mr Blunkett said he would press ahead with plans to deport asylum-seekers to UN-protected "safe areas". He will now ask other EU ministers to discuss moves to return failed asylum-seekers to "safe areas" in Africa, Asia and eastern Europe.

The plan has been championed by Tony Blair, but could anger refugee groups.

Asylum figures peaked in October with 8,900 applications but fell in the final two months of the year, encouraging hopes among ministers that the trend is finally downwards.

The Prime Minister has pledged to halve asylum applications by September. Asked if that was achievable, Mr Blunkett said: "I don't think any of us can be 100 per cent certain we can do this, because we are subject to global movements out of our control."

During 2002 almost 42,000 people were granted asylum or exceptional leave to remain (ELR). A total of 8,100 were granted asylum (10 per cent of decisions made by immigration officers), 19,965 (24 per cent) were granted ELR and 54,650 (66 per cent) were refused asylum. A further 13,875 were granted asylum on appeal.

The Government deported a record number of asylum-seekers – 13,335 including dependants – during the year, less than half of the Home Office's original target of 30,000. The proportion of deportations was lower because of the surge in applications. The highest numbers came from Iraq, Zimbabwe, Somalia, Afghanistan, Iran and Turkey. The overall number of asylum-seekers in receipt of either accommodation or benefit was 40 per cent higher at the end of 2002 than at the end of the previous year, totalling 91,880.

Mr Blunkett said ELR will be replaced by a "narrower category" of "humanitarian protection" from 1 April. The first enforced returns of failed asylum-seekers to Afghanistan will also begin next month.

Oliver Letwin, the shadow Home Secretary, condemned the "dreadful" figures and called for the system to be replaced by "a rational system of quotas for genuine refugees". He said: "I just don't believe there is any sign the Government is going to cure this problem using the present system."

Kate Allen, UK director of Amnesty International, said: "Persecution and conflict are driving the search for asylum, not supposed 'soft touch' factors. It is hard to see how the Government can reconcile its recent target of halving asylum applications in six months with our country's role in protecting those fleeing human rights violations."

Simon Taylor, spokesman for the United Nations high commissioner for refugees, said: "Governments need to do more to work in countries and regions of origin in order to address the crises that are creating refugees."