BURNLEY MP Peter Pike has welcomed the success of measures to cut the number of asylum seekers.
His comments follow the publication of the latest quarterly asylum statistics, which show claims have halved in the last year.
The figures and also showed that removal of unsuccessful applicants was up by 20%, and the number of claims awaiting an initial decision had fallen to the lowest in a decade.
The Labour backbencher said: "The Labour Government are on course to meet the target of halving the number of applications by September of this year, compared with the number a year ago.
"These new figures clearly demonstrate that action being taken by the Government, such as moving border controls to France and Belgium, and investment in new technology, is working -- both in tackling illegal immigration and abuse of the asylum system."
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