Asylum seekers overwhelm immigration authorities

The number of people applying for asylum in Norway has more than doubled so far this year, putting extraordinary pressure on the already over-burdened immigration agency UDI (Utlendingsdirektoratet). The lines are always long when immigrants need to deal with UDI. PHOTO: DAN PETTER NEEGAARD Ida Børresen is facing a larger stream of asylum seekers than ever before. PHOTO: TERJE BENDIKSBY/SCANPIX UDI director Ida Børresen unveiled new figures on Thursday documenting the stream of asylum seekers and other immigrants seeking working and residence permission. Not only has the number of would-be refugees jumped. Never before has Norway, which has had a severe labour shortage in recent years, granted so many applications for working permission. There currently are 100,900 foreigners legally allowed to work in Norway, up 24,800 or... [read full story]