The number of migrants arriving illegally in Britain on small boats in 2023 totalled 29,437, according to provisional government figures. It is about 36 per cent lower than the previous year, Reuters reports.
A year earlier, a record 45,775 people arrived on small boats at England’s southern beaches after a dangerous journey across one of the world’s busiest sea lanes, the English Channel.
British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak has made “stopping the boats” one of his five priorities. The prime minister is seeking to revive a plan to send illegal arrivals to Britain to Rwanda after it was blocked by a court.
Britain currently spends around £8 million a day to house migrants awaiting a decision in hotels and other accommodation, with more than £3bn a year also allocated to asylum claims.
The backlog of pending asylum claims has reached just over 134,000 for the year and it is the highest in two decades.
On Monday, the Home Office said the government had fulfilled a promise made by Rishi Sunak in December 2022 to clear a backlog of 92,000 asylum cases by the end of 2023.
More than 112,000 asylum cases were processed in 2023, with an asylum rate of 67 per cent, down from 76 per cent in 2022. Sunak said in a statement:
By clearing the legacy asylum backlog … we are saving the taxpayer millions of pounds in expensive hotel costs, reducing strain on public services and ensuring the most vulnerable receive the right support. But we cannot be complacent, which is why I am focused on delivering on my commitment to stop the boats and get flights off the ground to Rwanda.
