The UK government has announced measures to speed up the handling of asylum appeals as anti-immigration protests take place outside hotels housing asylum seekers in various cities across the country.
In a statement, Home Secretary Yvette Cooper described the current delays in processing appeals as “completely unacceptable” and unveiled plans to establish an independent body to assist the courts.
Currently, approximately 51,000 asylum appeals are awaiting review, with decisions taking over a year on average, according to the government. While initial decisions on asylum claims have been expedited in recent months, officials stated that delays in appeals are now the main bottleneck in the migration system, hampering deportations.
The newly proposed entity will consist of independent “arbitrators” and will prioritise expediting claims from individuals originating from so-called “safe countries.” Additionally, the government will impose a legal deadline of 24 weeks for courts to rule on appeals from asylum seekers housed by the government and foreign nationals with criminal convictions.
Cooper reiterated her commitment to drastically reducing the number of people in the asylum system by 2029, with the aim of ending the use of hotels as temporary accommodation.
Over the weekend, protests organised by anti-immigration groups were held outside several of these hotels across the UK. Demonstrations are expected to continue on Sunday.
Tensions turned violent in cities such as Bristol and Liverpool, where clashes broke out between protesters, police, and counter-demonstrators advocating for the rights of asylum seekers. Eleven arrests were made in Liverpool for offences including assault and affray. Similar confrontations occurred in Horley, Surrey.
As of late June, 32,059 asylum seekers were being accommodated in hotels, as the government is required to provide housing while their claims are processed.
Since mid-July, the town of Epping, north of London, has seen regular and at times violent protests outside one such hotel.
On Tuesday, the High Court temporarily ordered the government to stop using the Epping hotel to house asylum seekers. However, Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s administration is appealing the decision, which could lead to further legal challenges across the country.
In the 12-month period from June 2024 to June 2025, 111,084 people applied for asylum in the UK, marking a 14% increase compared to the previous year. This figure represents the highest annual total since record-keeping began in 2001.
