Almost all those who arrived on a small boat in last year still waiting for asylum decision from Home Office, figures show
Almost all small boat arrivals who claimed asylum in the UK over the last year are still waiting for a decision from the Home Office, figures show.
In the year ending June 2024, the Home Office said 99% of all the people arriving in small boats had an asylum claim recorded either as a main applicant or as a dependant.
However, the figures show that 96% of asylum applications made by people arriving in small boats in that period are undecided.
Politics latest: Sunak ‘will regret early election’ after migration stats
In addition, 31% of small boat arrivals since 2018 – or 33,224 people – are still waiting for an asylum decision.
Immigration minister Seema Malhotra said the figures show the “chaos the Tories left in our immigration and asylum system”.
Tories blamed for asylum backlog
In a statement, Ms Malhotra said: “Despite the hundreds of millions pumped into the Rwanda partnership, small boat crossings for the first half of this year went up by almost 20%.
“The asylum backlog has soared, costing the taxpayer billions. And the removal of foreign national offenders has dropped 20% since 2010.
“After 14 years, their record is one of failure and damaged public confidence.”
Home Office data from January to June this year showed the number of small boat arrivals was 18% higher than the same period in 2023, before starting to lower.
Ms Malhotra said the Labour government “will be different” and touted the government’s Border Security Command as well as its new returns programme.
“We can’t solve these problems overnight,” she added, “but we have already started work to deliver an immigration and asylum system that is controlled, managed, and works for Britain.”
It comes as the former head of the UK’s Border Force Tony Smith said Labour’s plan to increase detention capacity is unlikely to stop small boat crossings and the “only real solution” is a deal with the EU.
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Immigration centres to re-open
Home Office says crossings dropped
The Home Office also released data showing that in the 12 months to June 2024, 31,493 people arrived by small boats, 29% fewer than the 44,460 who made crossings by June 2023.
They found the number of “irregular arrivals” also fell in the same period: 38,784 people were detected by June this year – a 26% drop from 2023.
Sky News calculates small boat crossings differently, using the cumulative total of people detected crossing the English Channel in small boats by year.
Based on Sky News analysis of Home Office and PA figures from the start of the year to 21 August, the number of small boat crossings has actually risen.
The UK has seen 19,294 crossings as of Wednesday, whereas 18,618 crossings were recorded by 21 August 2023, making for an increase of 676.
Nonetheless, shadow home secretary and former minister James Cleverly credited a drop in crossings to the previous Conservative government.
He said on social media: “When I said I was going to cut migration, I meant it. Visas down, small boat arrivals down, cut the backlog & cut the asylum grant rate.
“It’s not about words, it’s about delivery.”
Read more:
Immigration detention centres to re-open in removals push
Plan unlikely to stop small boats, former border chief says
Keep up with all the latest news from the UK and around the world by following Sky News
Drop in health and care visas
Legal migration also fell in the year ending in June 2024: The Home Office reported there were 286,382 visas granted to main applicants in all work categories, 11% less than in the year before.
The biggest drop was seen in Health and Care Worker visas, where 89,095 were granted for a 26% drop compared to the year up to June 2024.
Fewer sponsored study visas were also granted – at 432,225, making for 13% less than the year ending June 2023 – while 3% more temporary worker visas were approved.
Mr Cleverly claimed in an interview that under the previous government, the UK had seen several people arriving on Health and Care Worker visas that “didn’t stay in the sector”.
“It was being used as a backdoor to our immigration system: that is wrong,” he said.
KuCoin announced an exclusive multiyear deal with Tomorrowland Winter and Tomorrowland Belgium from 2026 to 2028, making the exchange the music festival’s exclusive crypto and payments partner.
The move comes just weeks after KuCoin secured a Markets in Crypto-Assets Regulation (MiCA) service provider license in the European Union.
KuCoin’s MiCA play goes mass‑market
KuCoin EU Exchange recently obtained a crypto asset service provider license in Austria under the EU’s MiCA regime, giving it a fully regulated foothold in the bloc as Brussels’ new rulebook for exchanges, custody and stablecoins comes into force.
The Tomorrowland deal signals how KuCoin plans to use that status, not just to run a compliant trading venue, but to plug crypto rails directly into mainstream culture.
KuCoin said the Tomorrowland deal will cover Tomorrowland Winter 2026 in Alpe d’Huez, France, and Tomorrowland Belgium 2026 in Boom, Belgium, with the same arrangement continuing through 2028.
Related: Burning Man-inspired festival in Bali goes full Web3: Here’s how
From sponsorship to payment rails
KuCoin insists this is not just a logo play. A spokesperson at KuCoin told Cointelegraph that as an exclusive payments partner, the exchange is working with Tomorrowland to weave crypto into the festival’s existing payments stack so that “financial tools” sit behind the scenes of ticketing, merch and food and drink.
The stated goal is to keep the rails “intuitive and invisible,” rather than forcing festivalgoers through clunky wallets or unfamiliar flows, with KuCoin positioning itself as facilitating the secure and efficient movement of value while fans focus on the music.
The company declined to spell out exactly which assets and rails will be supported on‑site, or whether every purchase will run natively onchain, but said that KuCoin’s “Trust First. Trade Next.” mantra runs through its messaging.
The spokesperson stressed advanced security, multi‑layer protection and adherence to EU standards as the foundation for taking crypto beyond the trading screen and into live events.
Related: What is Markets in Crypto-Assets (MiCA)?
Learning from FTX’s Tomorrowland flop
Tomorrowland’s organizers have been here before. In 2022, the festival announced a Web3 partnership with FTX Europe that promised NFTs and “the future of music festivals” before collapsing along with the exchange itself months later.
That experience makes the choice of a MiCA‑licensed partner, and the emphasis on user protection, more than cosmetic; it is a second attempt at bridging culture and crypto (this time with regulatory scaffolding and clearer guardrails).
Rather than setting public hard targets for user numbers or payment volumes by 2028, KuCoin is pitching success as “seamless integration” of crypto into the festival experience:
“We aim to demonstrate that digital assets can be a core component of global digital finance, moving from a niche technology to a mainstream utility. “
Related: Spain’s regulator sets out MiCA transition rules for crypto platforms
Screenshots of an internal email outlining plans to wind down Shima Capital have surfaced online, days after the US Securities and Exchange Commission sued the crypto venture firm and its founder over allegations of investor fraud.
On Nov. 25, the SEC charged Shima Capital Management LLC and its founder, Yida Gao, with making false and misleading statements while raising almost $170 million from investors, the agency announced on Dec. 3.
The complaint, filed in the US District Court for the Northern District of California, alleged that Gao inflated his investment track record in marketing materials used to raise capital for Shima Capital Fund I between 2021 and 2023.
According to the SEC, Gao claimed one prior investment had delivered a 90x return, when the actual return was closer to 2.8x. The regulator also alleged that when discrepancies in the pitch deck were about to be reported publicly, Gao told investors the issues were the result of clerical errors.
SEC alleges $1.9 million undisclosed gain
Separately, the SEC claimed that Gao raised about $11.9 million through a special purpose vehicle tied to BitClout tokens, telling investors that they would be protected by discounted token purchases. While Gao did acquire tokens at a discount, the SEC said he sold them to the SPV at a higher price without disclosing that he personally retained about $1.9 million in profits.
Related: Crypto fundraising sets new record of $3.5B in a single week
In a Wednesday post on X, crypto journalist Kate Irwin shared screenshots of an email allegedly sent by Gao to portfolio founders. In the screenshots, Gao purportedly said he would step down as managing director of Shima Capital and that the fund would undergo an “orderly wind-down.”
The screenshots purportedly show Gao stating that the SEC and Department of Justice actions are related to his personal conduct, not that of Shima Capital’s portfolio companies, and claiming that no fines have been imposed on the company.
The screenshots also show that independent advisers from FTI Consulting and FTI Capital Management would oversee the wind-down process and monetization of investments, while Shima’s finance team would remain in place. Gao allegedly said he would remain involved with portfolio support “as permitted,” but without management control.
Cointelegraph could not independently verify the email. We reached out to Shima Capital and some of the fund’s portfolio companies for confirmation, but had not received responses at the time of publication.
Related: A beginners guide on raising funds using cryptocurrencies
Shima Capital launched with $200 million debut fund
In 2022, Shima Capital announced the launch of its first venture fund, Shima Capital Fund I, raising $200 million to back early-stage blockchain startups. Founded in 2021 by Gao, the firm said the fund received backing from a range of prominent investors, including Dragonfly Capital, Animoca Brands, OKX Blockdream Capital, Republic and Andrew Yang.
Shima Capital has invested in numerous crypto projects, including Humanity Protocol, Berachain, Monad, Pudgy Penguins, Shiba Inu and many others.
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