By Jaimie Kaffash
26 February 2010
The UK Border agency is failing in its efforts to reach targets for processing asylum applications within six months because of the inadequate staffing levels, an independent report has concluded.
In his first report, published today, UK Border Agency inspector John Vine says the target to process 90% of all asylum applications within six months by July 2011 was ‘unachievable’.
His study shows that, in November 2009, only 45% of cases were concluded within this time. Problems securing travel documentation for failed asylum seekers and dealing with legal challenges meant the target was not possible ‘with current staffing levels’.
The Public and Commercial Services union said the workforce was struggling to meet the current target – to process 75% of cases within six months. Paul O’Connor, PCS’s national officer for the UKBA, said that management were ‘burying their heads in the sand’ by increasing target levels to 90% of cases.
He told Public Finance: ‘Morale is absolutely rock bottom. The report has exposed what we have said all along about the service being chronically under-staffed. The “unachievable” targets mentioned by John Vine have been compounded by the UKBA management’s commitment to ministers to clear a backlog of existing cases.
‘But this is unachievable with even double the resources. They are living in a fantasy world – but it is a dangerous fantasy world. They are trying to get blood out of a stone by working our members to the bone.’
He added that ‘management must do the decent thing and increase staffing levels’, but instead ‘they are implementing budget cuts of 3.5% year on year’.
Vine’s report comes a week after staff at the UK Border Agency went on strike over plans to change their allowances. The PCS union says that the average staff member stands to lose £500 a month following cuts to the overnight allowance for staff working on ferry controls from France. UKBA staff will also be part of the 270,000 strong planned PCS strike on March 8–9 over redundancy terms.
Donna Covey, chief executive of the Refugee Council, agreed that government targets should be revised. She said: ‘It is in everyone’s interests that asylum cases are concluded quickly and fairly. However, it is one thing to have targets, it is another to make them so unrealistic that not only are they not met but, crucially, they result in the wrong decision being made and an often lengthy appeals process.’
Lin Homer, chief executive of the UKBA, argued that the targets ‘were achievable’. She added: ‘The UK Border Agency is concluding asylum cases faster than ever before, with the majority concluded within six months, down from an average of 22 months in 1997. We are working to ensure there is a realistic plan for dealing with all asylum claims that have not been concluded within six months.’
26 February 2010
The UK Border agency is failing in its efforts to reach targets for processing asylum applications within six months because of the inadequate staffing levels, an independent report has concluded.
In his first report, published today, UK Border Agency inspector John Vine says the target to process 90% of all asylum applications within six months by July 2011 was ‘unachievable’.
His study shows that, in November 2009, only 45% of cases were concluded within this time. Problems securing travel documentation for failed asylum seekers and dealing with legal challenges meant the target was not possible ‘with current staffing levels’.
The Public and Commercial Services union said the workforce was struggling to meet the current target – to process 75% of cases within six months. Paul O’Connor, PCS’s national officer for the UKBA, said that management were ‘burying their heads in the sand’ by increasing target levels to 90% of cases.
He told Public Finance: ‘Morale is absolutely rock bottom. The report has exposed what we have said all along about the service being chronically under-staffed. The “unachievable” targets mentioned by John Vine have been compounded by the UKBA management’s commitment to ministers to clear a backlog of existing cases.
‘But this is unachievable with even double the resources. They are living in a fantasy world – but it is a dangerous fantasy world. They are trying to get blood out of a stone by working our members to the bone.’
He added that ‘management must do the decent thing and increase staffing levels’, but instead ‘they are implementing budget cuts of 3.5% year on year’.
Vine’s report comes a week after staff at the UK Border Agency went on strike over plans to change their allowances. The PCS union says that the average staff member stands to lose £500 a month following cuts to the overnight allowance for staff working on ferry controls from France. UKBA staff will also be part of the 270,000 strong planned PCS strike on March 8–9 over redundancy terms.
Donna Covey, chief executive of the Refugee Council, agreed that government targets should be revised. She said: ‘It is in everyone’s interests that asylum cases are concluded quickly and fairly. However, it is one thing to have targets, it is another to make them so unrealistic that not only are they not met but, crucially, they result in the wrong decision being made and an often lengthy appeals process.’
Lin Homer, chief executive of the UKBA, argued that the targets ‘were achievable’. She added: ‘The UK Border Agency is concluding asylum cases faster than ever before, with the majority concluded within six months, down from an average of 22 months in 1997. We are working to ensure there is a realistic plan for dealing with all asylum claims that have not been concluded within six months.’
