Staff cuts and computer failures undermine border checks More than 1,000 staff over and above the planned reductions were lost last year, the NAO said, finding that the reductions had undermined the work of securing the Border and processing immigration applications. The NAO also found that a £385 million computer system supposed to streamline the handling of immigration applications has "significant problems" and is a year behind scheduled. The "Immigration Case Work" system is also £28 million over its £224 million budget. The mishandling of staffing levels and the computer programme hampered the agencies" work, the NAO said. "Loss of focus, poor governance and a tendency towards optimism bias in planning, delivery and reporting, have contributed to the current problems," it said. Internal border data shows that during 2011/12, "performance has deteriorated on appeals and removals," the auditors found. Still, the audit found that during 2011/12, some 66 per cent of asylum applications were concluded in one year, up from 58 per cent on the previous year.