Net immigration to the UK hit an all-time record high of 606,000 in 2022, data from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) show.<\/p>\n
Some 46,000 arrived in the country illegally crossing the Channel in small boats \u2013 almost 25 times more than three years earlier.<\/p>\n
With an annual daily record of 755 migrants making the journey\u00a0set earlier this month, tackling the issue remains one of the most pressing of Prime Minister Rishi Sunak\u2019s five key priorities.<\/p>\n
The vast majority of these arrivals \u2013 92 percent on average over the past five years \u2013 claim asylum: an application for refugee status that would, under international law, allow them to remain in the country. The UK received a total of 74,751 asylum applications last year.<\/p>\n
These numbers sound substantial, and they are increasing, but a quick look at figures from European peers shows that the UK is far from the most sought-after destination.<\/p>\n
READ MORE: <\/strong> Row as French diplomat claims Rishi Sunak is ‘deluded’ over stopping all boats<\/strong><\/p>\n According to the European Council, 962,160 non-EU citizens applied for asylum in the bloc in 2022.<\/p>\n This is up 52 percent on 2021\u2019s figure, but far below the 1,322,850 at the peak of the migrant crisis in 2015.<\/p>\n A quarter of all applications were made in Germany alone \u2013 the 243,835 total higher than anywhere else in the EU, and over three times more than the UK.<\/p>\n France came second with 156,455, followed by Spain (117,945), Austria (108,755) and Italy (84,290).<\/p>\n Don’t miss… <\/strong> We use your sign-up to provide content in ways you’ve consented to and to improve our understanding of you. This may include adverts from us and 3rd parties based on our understanding. You can unsubscribe at any time. More info<\/p>\n Inserting the UK into this chart puts it in sixth position, ahead of Greece which received 37,375 asylum applications last year.<\/p>\n Greece has a population of 10.5 million, compared to 67.5 million for the UK. In terms of asylum seekers per head \u2013 a rough barometer of a country\u2019s ability to assimilate refugees \u2013 Greece had a rate of 356 per 100,000. The UK figure is 113.<\/p>\n Austria tops the table in this regard, receiving 1,208 requests per 100,000 residents \u2013 a ratio over ten times higher than the UK.<\/p>\n This isn\u2019t to say governments on the Continent don\u2019t share the UK\u2019s concern over mass immigration.\u00a0<\/p>\n Back in June, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, head of a centre-left coalition, said he wanted to \u201csupport and advance\u201d a reform of the European asylum system.\u00a0<\/p>\n The country\u2019s main opposition party, the Christian Democratic Union (CDU), has long called for a tightening of German asylum laws as well as \u201creception and decision centers\u201d on the EU’s external borders.\u00a0<\/p>\n According to the UN Refugee Council there are some 35.3 million refugees globally, forcibly displaced by \u201cpersecution, conflict, violence, human rights violations or events seriously disturbing public order.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n Roughly 70 percent flee to countries neighbouring their place of origin.<\/p>\n
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Stop talking about bringing order to our asylum system, just get on with it![COMMENT] <\/strong><\/p>\n