Chris Philp Reveals Why He Says the British Public Is Being Put in Danger as Figures Show the Number of Asylum Seekers Disappearing From the UK Asylum System

Nearly 5,000 migrants were recorded as having gone missing from the UK immigration system before their asylum cases were completed over a six-year period, according to figures obtained through a Freedom of Information request.

The figures show that 4,838 people were recorded as absconders between January 2020 and December 2025. Only around one-third were later found, while 3,158 were still unaccounted for as of January 2026.

The figures cover different situations. They include asylum seekers who escaped from ports or immigration detention, as well as people who were released on immigration bail but later stopped following the rules requiring them to report to the authorities.

A person is not immediately classed as an absconder simply because officials cannot contact them. According to the report, authorities first make attempts to locate or contact the individual. They are recorded as an absconder after those efforts have been exhausted.

One of the biggest concerns is that officials do not necessarily know where everyone who remains unaccounted for has gone. Some could still be living in the UK without regular contact with the authorities, while others may have left Britain without officials immediately knowing about their departure. Home Office statistics acknowledge that it can sometimes take time for officials to discover that someone has voluntarily left the country.

The figures have led to criticism from Shadow Home Secretary Chris Philp. He argued that the situation creates a danger for the British public and said the Government needs to take a much tougher approach to illegal immigration.

Philp said authorities do not always know enough about people who enter the country illegally and argued that it was particularly concerning that thousands of people had subsequently disappeared from the immigration system.

He called for the UK to leave the European Convention on Human Rights and said immigration enforcement should receive more money so officers can find and remove people who have no legal right to remain in Britain. These are Philp’s political proposals and claims rather than conclusions established by the absconder figures themselves.

The issue can become more complicated when someone who has disappeared later comes back into contact with the authorities. Migrants who stop cooperating with the asylum process can have their claims treated as withdrawn and may also lose the financial support or accommodation they were receiving.

However, disappearing does not necessarily mean the end of someone’s immigration case. A person can later reappear and make further attempts to remain in the UK, including by making a human-rights claim or relying on their family circumstances.

One example highlighted in the report was Albanian national Gentian Hallaci. He claimed asylum after entering Britain illegally in 2018 but later disappeared from contact with the authorities for several years. He resurfaced in 2022 and attempted to remain in Britain based on his family life. His appeal was eventually rejected.

Another case involved Afghan national Asif Khan, who arrived illegally and claimed asylum in 2008. After losing contact with the authorities, his asylum claim was withdrawn. He later resurfaced and made further attempts to remain in Britain, including arguments based on his family life under Article 8 of the European Convention on Human Rights. His final appeal was rejected in 2022.

There are also questions over whether the recorded figures show the full scale of the problem. Not every asylum seeker living in a hotel, military site or other accommodation is detained or placed on immigration bail. This means the official absconder figures should not automatically be treated as a count of every asylum seeker whose whereabouts may at some point have become unknown.

The Government says it is taking action to strengthen immigration enforcement and remove people who do not have permission to remain in the country.

The Home Office says it has a dedicated tracing operation that works alongside police and other enforcement agencies to find people who abscond. It has also said the number of absconders has fallen significantly compared with the peak under the previous government, while acknowledging that more action is needed.

Official Home Office figures also show that more than 40,000 returns from the UK were recorded in the year ending June 2026, including both enforced and voluntary returns. That was around 8 per cent higher than during the previous 12-month period.

The Government plans to increase resources for Immigration Enforcement, with the aim of carrying out more raids, arrests and removals of people who have no legal right to remain in Britain.

The latest figures have added to the wider debate over how effectively Britain keeps track of people moving through its asylum and immigration system. While the Government says enforcement is being strengthened, the revelation that thousands of people recorded as absconders remained unaccounted for has brought renewed attention to how people are monitored after entering the system and what happens when they stop reporting to the authorities.