Migrants crossing Channel in boats add £1MILLION a day to cost of Britain’s asylum system

MIGRANTS crossing the Channel in boats add almost £1million a day to the cost of Britain’s asylum system, figures show.

The 28,431 people who made the perilous voyage in 2021 have landed taxpayers with a bill of £336million to process their claims.

And the cost — the equivalent of £920,619 a day — is thought to be just the tip of the iceberg as it does not cover healthcare, education or housing costs for new arrivals.

Alp Mehmet, of Migration Watch UK, said: “This is another shocking reminder of the Government’s abject failure to control our borders.”

Every time a migrant lands on the Kent coast, it adds £12,000 to the bill for processing their application, detention and living allowances while their claim is assessed.

It also covers a share of staff costs to deal with the backlog of 100,000 people stuck in the system.

The bill has more than doubled in the past three years — and is up by 42 per cent in the past year alone.

It raises fresh concerns about the state of Britain’s asylum system, which Home Secretary Priti Patel says is broken.

New figures from the Home Office show the bill for dealing with asylum claims has hit a new high of £1.4billion, while a record 55,000 applicants wait more than three years for their case to be completed.

The Home Office said: “The asylum system is broken. Our Nationality and Borders Bill will introduce a firm but fair system.”