UK asylum claims at highest level since 2004, with record backlog of cases

Home Office says 67,547 applications waiting to be dealt with, as ministers urged to drop nationalist posturing'

Asylum claims made in the UK have risen to their highest level for nearly 20 years, according to new figures from the Home Office, as the head of the Refugee Council calls for less nationalist posturing" over people fleeing war zones.

The backlog of cases waiting to be dealt with is also at a record high, with 67,547 people in the queue and more than 125,000 either waiting for a decision or due to be removed from the UK.