Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the Answer of 21 February 2017 to Question 63970, how many asylum claims lodged in the UK have been rejected in each year since 2014; and what proportion and how many claims lodged were correctly decided upon the first time in each such year.

The Home Office publishes figures on the outcome of asylum claims made during each calendar year in table as_06 of the Immigration Statistics release.

The Home Office also publishes figures on asylum appeals and determinations, in table as_14_q of the quarterly Immigration Statistics release.

A copy of the latest release, Immigration Statistics July to September 2016, is available from https://www.gov.uk/government/organisations/home-office/series/immigration-statistics-quarterly-release

All asylum claims lodged in the UK are carefully considered on their individual merits against a background of relevant case law and up to date country information. We ensure that claimants are given every opportunity to disclose information relevant to their claim before a decision is taken, even where that information may be sensitive or difficult to disclose.

We are working to improve the quality of decision-making to ensure that we properly consider all the evidence provided and get decisions right the first time. UK Visas and Immigration has an internal audit process, consisting of reviews by senior case workers and independent auditors, which assesses whether Home Office policy has been followed.

An allowed appeal is not in itself an indication that our decision was incorrect at the time it was made though we aim to reduce the allowed appeal rate by analysing the reasons why appeals are allowed and using this to further improve guidance and training.