More than 62,000 migrants could be granted asylum in the UK under efforts to clear the backlog of cases, estimates suggest.
The number of asylum applications waiting to be determined is expected to have reached 118,063 in January, the Refugee Council says. As many as 62,801 of them could be recognised as refugees in the UK, according to the charity.
Its calculation was based on the grant rates used in the 12 months leading up to the UK general election in July, with the Refugee Council applying that to asylum seekers of various nationalities to reach a "working assumption" of the figure in January.
No 10 Downing Street insisted the government was committed to ending the use of asylum hotels amid claims the Home Office is considering reopening some that were closed by the previous Conservative administration.
Officials are also believed to be stepping up asylum decision-making and moving towards monthly targets, similar to efforts to clear part of the backlog created under the previous government.
Enver Solomon, chief executive of the Refugee Council, said Labour had "inherited an asylum system that was utterly broken" and while "decisive early action has been taken to stop the system from falling over", a "comprehensive reform to create a fair, orderly and humane asylum system" was required.
"People seeking asylum need quick decisions so they can feel secure about their future in Britain, while the public needs to feel confident that the government is making fair decisions about who can stay in the UK and who cannot,” he said.
The Refugee Council suggested there could be a smaller proportion of Channel crossings accounting for asylum claims, as people could be looking for other ways to arrive in the UK, potentially in the back of lorries, because the sea journey has become more dangerous.
"It's no secret where you ramp up enforcement activity in relation to one route, not just enforcement activity close to the UK – closer to the UK Border – but all the way further back through Europe, you're going to see a shift in how people seek to get to the UK,” said Mr Solomon.
Labour vowed in its manifesto to stop housing migrants in taxpayer-funded hotels but was on Wednesday accused of considering using more. The Home Office is understood to be reviewing the matter but would not confirm if it was seeking to use more or reopen any of those previously closed.
A Home Office spokesman said: "This government took quick action to restore order to the asylum system that we inherited by restarting asylum processing to clear the backlog.
"This is happening as we continue to remove more people with no right to be here – with over 3,000 people returned since we formed government – while also driving down the costs of asylum accommodation to save money for the taxpayer."
According to the latest official figures, 176 people arrived on small boats on Tuesday, taking total arrivals so far this year to 27,980.
Four people, including a two-year-old boy, died this month after two boats got into trouble off the coast of France. On the same day, 973 migrants crossed the Channel in 17 small boats, the biggest daily number this year.
Labour has scrapped the previous Conservative government’s Rwanda plan, under which tens of thousands of asylum seekers who arrived in Britain without permission would be deported to the East African nation, in the hope this would deter others from attempting to cross the Channel on small boats.
But years of legal challenges meant that no one was sent to Rwanda under the scheme. Keir Starmer, a critic of plan since its inception, declared it "dead and buried" on his first day as Prime Minister.
Brief scoreline:
Tottenham 1
Son 78'
Manchester City 0
F1 The Movie
Starring: Brad Pitt, Damson Idris, Kerry Condon, Javier Bardem
Director: Joseph Kosinski
Rating: 4/5
MATCH INFO
England 19 (Try: Tuilagi; Cons: Farrell; Pens: Ford (4)
New Zealand 7 (Try: Savea; Con: Mo'unga)
The biog
Age: 46
Number of Children: Four
Hobby: Reading history books
Loves: Sports
Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.
Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.
“Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.
“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.
Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.
From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.
Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.
BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.
Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.
Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.
“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.
“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.
“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”
The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”
Who has lived at The Bishops Avenue?
- George Sainsbury of the supermarket dynasty, sugar magnate William Park Lyle and actress Dame Gracie Fields were residents in the 1930s when the street was only known as ‘Millionaires’ Row’.
- Then came the international super rich, including the last king of Greece, Constantine II, the Sultan of Brunei and Indian steel magnate Lakshmi Mittal who was at one point ranked the third richest person in the world.
- Turkish tycoon Halis Torprak sold his mansion for £50m in 2008 after spending just two days there. The House of Saud sold 10 properties on the road in 2013 for almost £80m.
- Other residents have included Iraqi businessman Nemir Kirdar, singer Ariana Grande, holiday camp impresario Sir Billy Butlin, businessman Asil Nadir, Paul McCartney’s former wife Heather Mills.
Hunting park to luxury living
- Land was originally the Bishop of London's hunting park, hence the name
- The road was laid out in the mid 19th Century, meandering through woodland and farmland
- Its earliest houses at the turn of the 20th Century were substantial detached properties with extensive grounds
