Reality check: The Inhumanity of the UK Asylum System
Today, it is common to see media reports and politicians depict so called “illegal migrants” and asylum seekers as dangerous, as a drain on public finances, and as greedy liars trying to cheat the system. This seeps into the attitudes of individuals and communities and has led to people seeking safety arriving in a hostile and dangerous environment: a world of racist riots, aggression in the street and migrant hotels under attack. Yet, seeking asylum is a fully legal process under the 1951 Refugee Convention. The convention even contains acknowledgement of the potential use of unsafe routes to get to safe countries; now a necessity in the UK, where safe and legal routes have become almost entirely inaccessible. People, in distress, looking rightfully for a safe place to live, turn to the UK as a supposedly welcoming, English-speaking country where family may live. Yet, they do not find a warm welcome, but hostility. Working is impossible, housing atrocious, and mental health issues are exacerbated. This is not the image presented in the UK press or political scene.
A complex and inaccessible application process for no reason
Slogans in protests against immigration and asylum seekers recently have included ideas of people “stealing houses from British people” and “stealing from the NHS” –constructing the narrative that people who come to the UK seeking shelter are able to immediately and easily access the welfare system. This is by no means the case, with many applicants for asylum waiting months, if not years, for an initial decision, followed by the possibility of appeals in tribunals which too could stretch on for years. This is despite the fact that most applicants are accepted, with 75% of initial decisions (not including those who appeal) granted in 2022. Various governments have attempted to clear the backlog of applications (19 000 are waiting for a decision as of June 2025), but it nevertheless remains an incredibly bureaucratic and inhumane system that leaves applicants without any information as to the processing of their case with few human faces to contact in the Home Office. A serious toll is taken on mental health, with individuals applying for asylum, a fully legal action under the 1951 Convention, being treated as criminals.
When those from the top countries for arrival on small boats (at the time of writing; Afghanistan, Syria, Iran, Vietnam, Eritrea) have very high acceptance rates for asylum due to the serious conflict and human rights abuses which asylum seekers are fleeing, a complex and inaccessible system makes little sense. It is simply to create a hostile environment for those escaping terrible situations or simply seeking a better life, with a purpose – whether for cruelty or political gain – unclear to many.
Housing that is not fit to live in should not create envy
Political debate and popular rhetoric over asylum hotels often suggest that individuals living in these spaces are being privileged over those who hold British citizenship. This ignores the unsuitability of such accommodation for long-term living and conceals the reality of those who are forced to leave hotels with short notice after gaining asylum status. Individuals in the hotels receive destitution level support and are confined to small rooms, with no knowledge of when this situation will end. The hotels themselves were a result of the backlog that grew in the Home Office in the late 2010s; they are not a suitable permanent solution. There are frequent reports of rats and mould, and there are normally no provisions for cooking food either. Protestors and opponents of asylum hotels suggest that asylum seekers should feel lucky for these conditions – insinuating that they are deserving of a treatment that is less than human.
After applicants receive positive decisions from the Home Office – as many do – they are given a mere 28 days to find new accommodation. Without funds, or time to find a job, or even time to get support from local authorities, many end up homeless or in dangerous situations. Again, the treatment of humans that have been proven (under Home Office rules) to be fleeing from “persecution, war or violence” due to “a well-founded fear of persecution for reasons of race, religion, nationality, political opinion or membership in a particular social group” (1951 Refugee Convention) is thoroughly inhumane - far from a source of envy by the protestors who see their situation as privileged.
No Right to Work, so how can people contribute?
Another common belief about those coming to seek safety in the UK is that they are choosing to not work or contribute to society – without the recognition that this is legally nearly impossible. Asylum applicants have no legal right to work in the UK without specific permission from the Home Office, which too often takes months (on average, 5 and a half), and if granted, applicants can only apply to jobs on the Immigration Salary List. Unsurprisingly, the Home Office does not advertise the possibility to apply for this. Alongside a general lack of information about asylum applicants’ rights in general, applicants therefore rely on charities and organisations to supply this information. The Home Office is faceless here too, and many report fearing deportation and derision in contacting them, again exacerbated by a lack of education about their rights. It is difficult to imagine how it can be expected that these applicants contribute to the UK economy – or even to society generally – when they are kept secluded from communities in unsuitable hotels and unable to work, yet this contempt continues despite expressed wishes by many for a purpose and a way to give back.
This situation is untenable
To treat those seeking safety with such inhumanity is already incomprehensible. Yet the underlying beliefs of many protestors is based on a sense of injustice caused by previous and current government policies that have left them feeling forgotten and unsupported. If the truth about the intense difficulties faced by people seeking asylum to secure even basic rights were understood, then perhaps we could become more welcoming and understanding.
If you wish to help create this society, then do get involved! There are many wonderful charities across Edinburgh, Scotland and the UK who are working to create a more humane asylum system. A select few are:
Care4Calais https://care4calais.org/get-involved/
The Welcoming https://www.thewelcoming.org/get-involved-the-welcoming-edinburgh/
RefugeeAction https://www.refugee-action.org.uk/
REACT:Scotland https://www.re-act-scotland.org/Get-involved/
SU2R https://standuptoracism.org.uk/
Or come along to STAR’s weekly meetings at 18:30 on Wednesdays in room LG.09 in 40 George Square at the University of Edinburgh.
Or, come join our events or volunteering opportunities (see the other sections of our website!), and help make Edinburgh a safer, more welcoming, and kinder place.
References/ further reading:
https://freemovement.org.uk/briefing-the-sorry-state-of-the-uk-asylum-system/
https://www.ein.org.uk/news/flex-report-exposes-systemic-barriers-preventing-
asylum-seekers-accessing-work-uk
https://msf.org.uk/issues/uk-asylum-crisis
