Excellent panel just now at @instituteforgov on "is the Home Office fit for purpose"? Ex-Perm Sec Philip Rutnam: the greater volume of straightforward cases are decided unfussily, it's where decisions are more complex (or, I'd add, involve judgment) where things can go wrong 1/ Rutnam notes how asylum cases are decided at a very junior level, but in (eg) Switzerland at the equivalent of three rungs higher (roughly twice the salary if done in UK). Worth saying: an experiment in late 00s had these roles up a grade & mainly recent graduates given wide 2/

Hello @sajidjavid @ukhomeoffice former Home Office person here, with asylum, immigration and culture change experience. Here are seven things I’d urge you to do which will improve the system. 1/8 Make it your priority to simply law, rules and process. The complexity causes needless mistakes, delays and costs. You can’t give, or get, decent service in this environment. The challenge is – it’s not sexy & always gets pushed down the list 2/8