Labour party membership fell by almost 25,000 in 2022, while its income rose, figures show – as it happened

The party had 407,445 members at the end of 2022, down almost 25,000 compared with 2021, annual accounts show. This live blog is closedAlbania was the country providing most asylum applications in the year ending in June 2023, theHome Office figures show.As PA Media reports, there were 11,790 applications by Albanian nationals in that 12-month period, 7,557 of which came from arrivals on boats crossing the English Channel. PA says:The number of Albanian small boat arrivals peaked during the summer of 2022 and by early 2023 had dropped below levels seen in 2021.Afghans were the second most common nationality applying for asylum in the year to June 2023, with 9,964 applications, almost double the number in the previous 12 months (5,154).These new statistics set out in stark terms the complete chaos the Tories have created in the immigration and asylum system.The asylum backlog has reached a new record high, with 175,000 people now waiting for decisions. Only one per cent of last year ’s 45,000 small boats cases have received a decision and the number of failed asylum seekers being returned is also down a whopping 70 per cent since 2010. This is a disastrous record for the prime minister and home secretary.Continue reading...
Source: Guardian Unlimited Science - Category: Science Authors: Tags: Politics UK news Conservatives Labour Rishi Sunak House of Commons Immigration and asylum Refugees Artificial intelligence (AI) Science Computing Law Scotland Scottish National party (SNP) Scottish independence Jeremy Corbyn Source Type: news