Jill Mortimer has spoken during the Home Offices Department questions in the chamber today (Monday 27 November) to the Home Secretary, James Cleverly and Minister for Immigration, Robert Jenrick.
Jill Mortimer, the MP for Hartlepool, asked for the Minister's assurance that his department would “raise the bar” to modernise the UK’s asylum application process, and look for solutions to the rising numbers of migrants and asylum seekers at the source.
She added that “much of Europe is in a dire state because of mass immigration, we cannot let the UK go the same way.”
The number of successful asylum claims was 75% in 2022, the highest rate since 1990. This has been followed by revised figures from the ONS of 2022’s net migration figures at 745,000, announced on Thursday.
The Minister replied by agreeing that the UK’s immigration figures for some nationalities are above our European neighbours, and assuring the Hartlepool MP that the department has taken action to resolve this.
The Minister added that successful Albanian asylum applications have fallen from 53% in June of last year, to 19% in June of this year and have fallen since. Georgia and India have also been added to the list of safe states to speed up returns of illegal migrants from these places.
This isn’t the first time Jill has raised concerns about growing immigration on behalf of her constituents. Last month, Jill spoke about a high number of asylum seekers in Hartlepool who are awaiting decisions on applications or appeals.
Speaking after her question in the chamber, Jill Mortimer said:
“I am often contacted by constituents who are concerned about the rising numbers of mass immigration to our country and our home, Hartlepool.
“The increasing numbers of migrants and asylum seekers are particularly alarming as the reasoning behind those fleeing their home countries in recent years, and in the face of climate change, famine and war, will continue to grow.
“I am assured by the Immigration Ministers commitment to reviewing the list of safe states, visible action to stop the boats, and promise of flights to Rwanda within the next year.
“I will continue to push for a more stringent application process, and to bring our current conventions and international treaties into the present day so that the flights and further immigration measures will go ahead.”