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Politics
Original poster

Immigration - wanting some stats

134 replies

ITSJUSTBRIDGET · 12/08/2025 20:08

I’m so so sick of the immigration media headlines

the attached shows the immigration backlog since 1990. I’m wanting to add in the number or home office immigration staff into the graph

how did we go from a low of around 3000 in 2005 to this years figure of 91,000

ive googled home office staff in 2010 which had a total of 28,423 staff

2010, the Home Office had a total of 2811 payroll staff. This figure represents the total number of employees within Additionally, the wider Home Office group included other agencies like the Criminal Records Bureau with 668 staff, the Identity & Passport Service with 3944 staff, and the UK Border Agency with 21752 staff.

At the end of March 2024, the Home Office employed over 51,000 people in a wide range of roles, across the UK and overseas

So to summarise 2010 there were around 28k staff with a backlog of around 4000 migrants/asylum seekers

today - we have a backlog of 91000 applications with a total number of home office staff at 51000

can anyone help me out with this logic?

TO BE VERY CLEAR, I AM NOT A EXTREME RIGHT WING VOTER, I’M FOCUSED ON WHY OUR GOVERNMENT HAS NOT/IS NOT SEEMINGLY ABLE TO DEAL WITH THE BACKLOG WHICH IS NOT FAIR ON ANYONE

Immigration - wanting some stats
OP posts:
PandoraSocks · 14/08/2025 16:42

Lifeinthepit · 14/08/2025 16:38

See my post above.

Show quote history

None of that is evidence. It is conjecture.

Someiremember · 14/08/2025 16:42

Lifeinthepit · 14/08/2025 16:18

What's the source of your "news" that they aren't doing it? Independent verification please.

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I’m curious what you read generally for news

me? It’s a mix of Times, observer, New York Times, Spectator and the Economist

Over to you…. (Not that you’ll answer)

Lifeinthepit · 14/08/2025 16:38

PandoraSocks · 14/08/2025 16:37

So where is YOUR evidence of the waving through?

Show quote history

See my post above.

Lifeinthepit · 14/08/2025 16:38

PandoraSocks · 14/08/2025 16:32

Sooooo the people from the HO who posted here are not telling the whole truth (which may or may not be the case) but the eavesdropping in a restaurant anecdote MUST be true.

OK.🤭🤭🤭

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I simply ask myself the questions listed above

  1. Would a government under pressure bend the rules for political expediency?
  1. Can we trust government figures?
  1. What's the main issue of the day, an issue that is Number 1 for voting intent decisions, and which no improvement has yet happened?
  1. Has the government got the best interests of the people of the UK at heart?.cf Chagos etc..
  1. Edit...what's the only thing the government has in its control to paint a brighter picture? Getting the backlog.down. easy...just waive people in.

So whether the person speaking knows what he is saying is true or not doesnt matter. Looking at the overall picture the odds are it is true.

PandoraSocks · 14/08/2025 16:37

Lifeinthepit · 14/08/2025 16:33

How low level are you? Do you attend policy meetings where decisions are taken? If you did then presumably it would be a breach of confidentiality to come on mumsnet and spout stuff. If you don't attend policy meetings then you have not much more information than the rest of us.

I always refrain from holding forth on mumsnet about informing Ive gleaned at work. A little silly of you to do so.

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So where is YOUR evidence of the waving through?

TooTedious · 14/08/2025 16:36

Lifeinthepit · 14/08/2025 16:18

What's the source of your "news" that they aren't doing it? Independent verification please.

Show quote history

You want her to provide independent verification of something that isn’t happening?

I believe FIFA will not be substituting the ball with a watermelon at the next World Cup. Strangely enough, none of the world’s press have seen fit to comment on it. How odd 🤔

PandoraSocks · 14/08/2025 16:35

TooTedious · 14/08/2025 16:21

It isn’t true.

I can’t speak for anyone else on here because I don’t know what they do for a living or what their experience is. But I do do it for a living and I want to make it very clear to you that nobody is being ‘waved through’ or issued with grants of leave that they wouldn’t otherwise be entitled to, simply to clear a backlog. The concept is utterly ridiculous. To start with, if it were true, there wouldn’t be a sodding backlog, would there?

I'm.just a person with more than one brain cell I can see I’m not the only person who struggles with maths.

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Ah, but pp's sweet reasoning is that if people weren't being waved through, the backlogs would be bigger.

Lifeinthepit · 14/08/2025 16:33

TooTedious · 14/08/2025 16:28

🤦🏻‍♀️ Oh my God, you think a relatively low level civil servant would go to the trouble of concealing some bizarre attempt to deceive the nation?

Why? What would be in it for me, exactly?Use of a highlighter in a colour of my choice maybe? Exclusive use of the best chair in the office? Or maybe a window seat?

You silly, silly woman.

Show quote history

How low level are you? Do you attend policy meetings where decisions are taken? If you did then presumably it would be a breach of confidentiality to come on mumsnet and spout stuff. If you don't attend policy meetings then you have not much more information than the rest of us.

I always refrain from holding forth on mumsnet about informing Ive gleaned at work. A little silly of you to do so.

PandoraSocks · 14/08/2025 16:32

Lifeinthepit · 14/08/2025 16:13

Er...they work for the HO!!🤣🤣🤣. They are marking their own homework! Do you think they would tell you the truth? Would they whistle-blow to mumsnet? Hardly. But again, sweet that you think that everyone tells the truth on mumsnet.

Oh and 70k backlog. I bet the real.backlog would be double that if they don't waive a fair few through.

Edited
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Sooooo the people from the HO who posted here are not telling the whole truth (which may or may not be the case) but the eavesdropping in a restaurant anecdote MUST be true.

OK.🤭🤭🤭

TooTedious · 14/08/2025 16:31

Lifeinthepit · 14/08/2025 16:22

So you work in immigration. Have you signed the OSA? Or anything regarding professional confidentiality?

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Of course I have. We all sign it. And I’ve been very careful not to say anything that contravenes that in order to prove my point to you.

What it requires me to do is to maintain confidentiality. It doesn’t require me to lie or allow ridiculous conspiracy theories to stand unchallenged.

TooTedious · 14/08/2025 16:28

Lifeinthepit · 14/08/2025 16:13

Er...they work for the HO!!🤣🤣🤣. They are marking their own homework! Do you think they would tell you the truth? Would they whistle-blow to mumsnet? Hardly. But again, sweet that you think that everyone tells the truth on mumsnet.

Oh and 70k backlog. I bet the real.backlog would be double that if they don't waive a fair few through.

Edited
Show quote history

🤦🏻‍♀️ Oh my God, you think a relatively low level civil servant would go to the trouble of concealing some bizarre attempt to deceive the nation?

Why? What would be in it for me, exactly?Use of a highlighter in a colour of my choice maybe? Exclusive use of the best chair in the office? Or maybe a window seat?

You silly, silly woman.

Lifeinthepit · 14/08/2025 16:22

TooTedious · 14/08/2025 16:21

It isn’t true.

I can’t speak for anyone else on here because I don’t know what they do for a living or what their experience is. But I do do it for a living and I want to make it very clear to you that nobody is being ‘waved through’ or issued with grants of leave that they wouldn’t otherwise be entitled to, simply to clear a backlog. The concept is utterly ridiculous. To start with, if it were true, there wouldn’t be a sodding backlog, would there?

I'm.just a person with more than one brain cell I can see I’m not the only person who struggles with maths.

Show quote history

So you work in immigration. Have you signed the OSA? Or anything regarding professional confidentiality?

TooTedious · 14/08/2025 16:21

Lifeinthepit · 14/08/2025 16:03

What an irrelevant question! It's either true or it isn't. You don't know anything yourself although you may pretend to. All we can ask ourselves is "do we think a government might do something for political expediency?" And "Do we all trust Labour has the UKs best interests at heart?"

(Do we heck! 🤣.)

Show quote history

It isn’t true.

I can’t speak for anyone else on here because I don’t know what they do for a living or what their experience is. But I do do it for a living and I want to make it very clear to you that nobody is being ‘waved through’ or issued with grants of leave that they wouldn’t otherwise be entitled to, simply to clear a backlog. The concept is utterly ridiculous. To start with, if it were true, there wouldn’t be a sodding backlog, would there?

I'm.just a person with more than one brain cell I can see I’m not the only person who struggles with maths.

Lifeinthepit · 14/08/2025 16:20

Someiremember · 14/08/2025 16:14

Reform? Yes?

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So what you are saying is that you can be easily fooled if you are a labour voter and are happy to unquestioningly accept the party line that no waiving through is going on, but if you have the wit to question Labour propaganda you must.be a reform voter?

EasternStandard · 14/08/2025 16:18

strawberrybubblegum · 13/08/2025 08:29

We seem to have slightly higher acceptance at first decision than France, but not a huge difference. This doesn't take onto account how we deal with appeals though, which seem to be absolutely standard, and just used to string out the process. Not allowing appeals seems like it should be a political choice we could make, but the human rights lot would make a lot of noise!

Interestingly Denmark have similar initial acceptance at first decision to us - but are known to be really tight on what asylum means. No permanent right to adylum - it's reassessed periodically - and no right to bring in dependents. It's those restrictions which have made the difference to their numbers .

Edited
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I didn’t realise Portugal was that low, I mean 10 compared to Spain at 50k. And Sweden seems low for some reason.

Missed Germany which is very high. The grant rates are incredibly varied.

Lifeinthepit · 14/08/2025 16:18

Someiremember · 14/08/2025 16:13

Sweet Jesus

Why aren’t you happy to refer to source of your news?

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What's the source of your "news" that they aren't doing it? Independent verification please.

Someiremember · 14/08/2025 16:14

Lifeinthepit · 14/08/2025 16:06

Relevance to the point in hand please?

Oh hang on...I see what you are ever so subtly trying to do. Lump people into opinion groups according to what box they might tick in an election and then extrapolate from there. Like some kind of really great political analyst 🤣🤣

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Reform? Yes?

Someiremember · 14/08/2025 16:13

Lifeinthepit · 14/08/2025 16:03

What an irrelevant question! It's either true or it isn't. You don't know anything yourself although you may pretend to. All we can ask ourselves is "do we think a government might do something for political expediency?" And "Do we all trust Labour has the UKs best interests at heart?"

(Do we heck! 🤣.)

Show quote history

Sweet Jesus

Why aren’t you happy to refer to source of your news?

Lifeinthepit · 14/08/2025 16:13

PandoraSocks · 14/08/2025 16:07

Well, aren't you sweet!

We have had HO people on the thread. None of them have suggesting people are being "waved through" the asylum process.

If the last government and this have just "waved people through", there wouldn't be a backlog of 70k +

If the last government and this have just "waved people through" why are there around 50k appeals outstanding?

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Er...they work for the HO!!🤣🤣🤣. They are marking their own homework! Do you think they would tell you the truth? Would they whistle-blow to mumsnet? Hardly. But again, sweet that you think that everyone tells the truth on mumsnet.

Oh and 70k backlog. I bet the real.backlog would be double that if they don't waive a fair few through.

titchy · 14/08/2025 16:11

OverlyFragrant · 14/08/2025 12:31

Because they cost more than they put into the economy.
It's not just the student, its their children, and dependants, requiring schooling, healthcare, housing etc.

It's really not that hard to understand.

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Most are no recourse to public funds so no benefits. They can use the NHS but pay a hefty surcharge for this - it’s not free. Dependents are entitled to schooling, but, most don’t have child dependents and of those that do, I can’t see how schooling (£6k a year ish) can cost more than the total they pay in taxes plus rent, travel, food, entertainment etc.

PandoraSocks · 14/08/2025 16:07

Lifeinthepit · 14/08/2025 15:59

No. I'm.just a person with more than one brain cell. Sweet that you think it might not be true. I expect there aren't many of you that think like that.

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Well, aren't you sweet!

We have had HO people on the thread. None of them have suggesting people are being "waved through" the asylum process.

If the last government and this have just "waved people through", there wouldn't be a backlog of 70k +

If the last government and this have just "waved people through" why are there around 50k appeals outstanding?

Lifeinthepit · 14/08/2025 16:06

Someiremember · 14/08/2025 16:01

Who would you vote for tomorrow if a GE was called @Lifeinthepit ?

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Relevance to the point in hand please?

Oh hang on...I see what you are ever so subtly trying to do. Lump people into opinion groups according to what box they might tick in an election and then extrapolate from there. Like some kind of really great political analyst 🤣🤣

Lifeinthepit · 14/08/2025 16:03

Someiremember · 14/08/2025 15:58

what source of news do you refer to generally?

Show quote history

What an irrelevant question! It's either true or it isn't. You don't know anything yourself although you may pretend to. All we can ask ourselves is "do we think a government might do something for political expediency?" And "Do we all trust Labour has the UKs best interests at heart?"

(Do we heck! 🤣.)

Someiremember · 14/08/2025 16:01

Lifeinthepit · 14/08/2025 15:59

No. I'm.just a person with more than one brain cell. Sweet that you think it might not be true. I expect there aren't many of you that think like that.

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Who would you vote for tomorrow if a GE was called @Lifeinthepit ?

Lifeinthepit · 14/08/2025 15:59

PandoraSocks · 14/08/2025 15:57

Do you work at the HO?

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No. I'm.just a person with more than one brain cell. Sweet that you think it might not be true. I expect there aren't many of you that think like that.