Asylum seekers numbers fall
Published Date:
28 August 2008
The number of asylum seekers in Wigan is continuing to fall, new figures show.
There are currently 433 refugees in the borough awaiting decisions over their applications.
All are housed and supported in the private sector by three private providers contracted by the United Kingdom Border Agency.
This compares with a peak in June 2003 when there were 921 asylum seekers as part of the controversial policy of dispersing such people throughout the UK.
Figures have been dropping consistently since then.
Most asylum seekers are receiving "subsistence only" support – about £39 a week, although some are on "hard case" support, who receive vouchers instead of cash.
Immigration minister Liam Byrne said asylum applications to the UK were falling.
They dropped to 5,720 in the second quarter of this year, down from 6,595 in the first three months of 2008.
The full article contains 145 words and appears in Wigan Evening Post newspaper.
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Last Updated:
28 August 2008 10:14 AM
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Source:
Wigan Evening Post
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Location:
Wigan
