Australia is holding more than 1,000 asylum seekers in shameful conditions in a processing centre on Manus Island, Papua New Guinea.

The number of refugees from Syria applying for protection in the UK increased last year, according to the Home Office’s quarterly statistics.

The Refugee Council has submitted evidence to the Home Affairs Select Committee, which is undertaking an inquiry into the asylum system for the first time in ten years.

Alarmingly low levels of asylum support are forcing thousands of children and their families seeking safety in the UK into severe poverty.