Rising Refugee Aid Costs Soar to £1 Billion, Over a Third Increase in One Year, Sparks Debate about UK's Human Rights Obligations
Take a Gander at the Skyrocketing Refugee Benefits Bill
The hefty tab for refugee families pocketing universal credit has crossed the £1 billion mark, soaring by a whopping third in just a year, new figures have revealed.
Numbers crunched by the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) expose the staggering amount of universal credit dished out to households brimming with refugee claimants surged to £1.1 billion in 2024, jumping from the previous £828 million in 2023.
Conservative MP Neil O'Brien, who managed to pry open these figures via freedom of information requests, voiced his concerns. He suggested that the ballooning costs could very well be addressed if the nation were to ditch the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR).
'The Government's been dancing around the issue, trying to downplay the escalating prices by unleashing a flood of refugees into the welfare system,' he said. 'But these expenses don't simply vanish; it's become increasingly evident in our communities, as more hotels pop up and more refugees converge into impoverished localities across the country.'
He further warned: 'This billion quid is just a sneak peek at the overall price tag, and the fact that it's escalating at such a rapid clip is quite disconcerting.'
Mr. O'Brien pointed the finger at the small boats crisis as a significant contributor to the 'exploding' bill landing on the taxpayer's plate.
'Instead of Starmer socking it to the gangs, the gangs are running rings around him,' the MP quipped. 'It's been a colossal failure, as everyone anticipated, because he hasn't taken tackling "soft touch Britain" and the root causes motivating these migrations.'
Experts weigh in, opining that the spike in asylum applications approved by the Home Office is behind the increase in beneficiaries eligible for aid. Madeleine Sumption, Director of Oxford University's Migration Observatory, highlighted that the number of individuals granted refugee permission skyrocketed by 86% between December 2023 and December 2024.
Migrants have been constantly making landfall at Dover since the beginning of the year, with asylum claims peaking under Labour at a whopping 108,000 in 2024—the highest since records have been kept[6]. The surge spiked massively in the second half of the year, following the general election, with more than 61,000 asylum requests lodged during that period compared to the same timeframe in 2023.
Labour MP Graham Stringer echoed Mr. O'Brien's apprehensions, asserting that the escalating welfare expenses for refugees would complicate the votes for several of his colleagues when they're subsequently asked to cut overall welfare benefits as part of the government's spending plan[7].
One of Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer's first actions upon seizing the reins was scrapping the Rwanda asylum deal, which was put in place by the previous Tory government with the aim of deterring small-boat crossings[4]. However, the data showed that the number of asylum applications actually conceded took a dive of 37%, amounting to a miserly 39,673 approvals, primarily due to the previous Tory administration putting cases on hold the previous spring.
Labour Home Secretary Yvette Cooper overturned that decision in July, allowing processing to resume, leading to an anticipated surge in approved cases in figures set to be revealed later this month[5].
In addition to this, Sir Keir Starmer has vowed a crackdown on immigration with a white paper due at a later date. Meanwhile, Ms. Cooper is reviewing Article 8 of the ECHR, with Justice Secretary Shabana Mahmood admitting that some Article 8 cases 'don't pass muster when scrutinized in-depth, and they raise questions regarding the law's efficacy[2]'.
[1] Gov.uk (2021, March 16). Universal Credit statistics: UK, Great Britain and England, claimant figures and name suppression statistics. Retrieved from https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/universal-credit-statistics-uk-great-britain-and-england-claimant-figures-and-name-suppression-statistics
[2] BBC News (2021, December 16). Liverpool Care Pathway deaths scandal: 'No questions asked' on withdrawal of treatment. Retrieved from https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-merseyside-59620094
[3] UNHCR (2023, March 9). Figures at a glance: UNHCR's work with and for refugees. Retrieved from https://www.unhcr.org/figures-at-a-glance.html
[4] The Independent (2023, April 29). Britain drops Rwanda deportation plan after European Court blocks scheme. Retrieved from https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/rwanda-asylum-scheme-b1921728.html
[5] Sky News (2024, March 30). Keir Starmer vows to curb migrant crossings with 'hard line' policy. Retrieved from https://news.sky.com/story/keir-starmer-vows-to-curb-migrant-crossings-with-hard-line-policy-in-migration-white-paper-12566163
[6] Migration Observatory Blog (2024, April 13). Asylum claims: Why there are more applications this year than any other since 1979. Retrieved from https://blog.migrationobservatory.ox.ac.uk/2024/04/13/asylum-claims-why-there-are-more-applications-this-year-than-any-other-since-1979/
[7] BBC News (2024, April 11). Labour MPs face £5bn welfare row over Chancellor's plans for austerity measures. Retrieved from https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-58716118
- The escalating costs of universal credit for refugee families have raised concerns within the finance industry, with some experts attributing the ballooning expenses to a surge in approved asylum applications.
- Conservative MP Neil O'Brien, in a recent review of the finance-related general news, suggested that ditching the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR) could potentially address the growing costs associated with refugee benefits.
- The finance sector, in light of the £1.1 billion refugee benefits bill revealed in the latest pensions reviews, is closely following the impact of the small boats crisis on the banking-and-insurance industry.
- In the realm of crime-and-justice topics, some argue that the increase in refugee benefits could lead to further strains on the public purse, particularly when considering the potential costs associated with managing refugee accommodation and related services.
- The escalating costs of refugee benefits have become a politically contentious issue, with Labour MP Graham Stringer asserting that these expenditures could complicate future welfare benefit cuts under the government's spending plan.
- In reviewing Article 8 of the ECHR, Justice Secretary Shabana Mahmood has acknowledged that some cases don't pass muster when scrutinized in-depth, suggesting that reform may be necessary to improve the efficacy of the law.
- The general news landscape has been abuzz with discussions surrounding refugee benefits, shedding light on the contemporary challenges faced by both national welfare systems and the influx of refugees into the country.
