The Committee's inquiry into the asylum process examines general trends in asylum applications in Europe and the rise in applications to the UK over the past decade, problems in processing claims and government responses, the adequacy of support for asylum seekers, detention and removals, economic migration and illegal working, recent developments within the EU to establish greater consistency in approach to the issue and the use of quotas. Support is stated for the use of induction and accommodation centres, fast track processing of claims, and language analysis schemes to detect nationality fraud. The Committee notes that it is not surprising that the asylum system has had difficulty in coping with the twenty-fold increase in the number of asylum applications to the UK over the past 15 years, and highlights the importance of 'front loading' resources so as to achieve fair and sustainable application decisions at the initial stage. Other findings include the need for: an independent review of the operation of section 55 of the Nationality, Immigration and Asylum Act 2002, which prevents any support being given to asylum seekers unless they have made a claim immediately on arrival in the country; and tougher action against employers who employ use illegal immigrants.

The asylum system is overburdened and under severe pressure. The backlog of asylum cases that should have been cleared by 2011 has reached 32,600, with some people waiting up to 16 years for a decision. Thousands appear to be living in a sub-standard level of housing as part of the COMPASS contract supplied by the private contractors G4S, Serco and Clearel. These companies must be held accountable. The quality of decision making is also of great concern as 30% of appeals against initial decisions were allowed in 2012. The impact of decisions are grave - if asylum is not granted when it should be then the UK is failing to protect a vulnerable person. If asylum is granted when it is not deserved then the UK may well end up harbouring war criminals and terrorists. Those who apply for asylum should be checked against national and international law enforcement agency and security databases to ensure that we are not harbouring those who intend us harm. The Home Secretary has to give assurance that any anomalies in the process, which have allowed decisions such as this to take place, are addressed immediately. The are also oncerns about the level of support available to those who seek asylum in the UK. The Immigration and Asylum Act 1999 section 4, which provides a reduced support system for asylum seekers who had had their claim refused but were unable to return to their country of origin through reasons that were no fault of theirs, is not a solution.