Thousands of asylum cases to be fast-tracked as Home Office struggles with Sunak’s backlog pledge

Government could use failure to return questionnaires in 20 working days to delete asylum applications

Thousands of asylum seekers are to be sent 10-page questionnaires that could be used to decide their claims, as the Home Office struggles to achieve Rishi Sunak’s pledge to clear a record backlog.

With official figures being released on Thursday expected to show that more than 150,000 applications are outstanding, the Home Office has announced a fast-track scheme for some countries.

It means some 12,000 asylum seekers are to be considered for refugee status without face-to-face interviews.