The Home Office has revealed it does not collect data on the number of migrants who are granted asylum on religious grounds.
It comes as there is evidence that some migrants convert to Christianity in order to give themselves an advantage in their asylum applications.
Home secretary James Cleverly said he has requested data to the extent of which migrants a conversion to Christianity plays a role in successful asylum claims.
It comes after an internal review that was commissioned the chemical attack in Clapham last week suspected to have been carried out by Abdul Ezedi.
Home Office sources told The Times there were in consistencies in Ezedi's application
PA
The 35-year-old was an Afghan sex offender who was allowed to stay in the UK after claiming he had converted to Christianity.
Home Office sources said that officials in the department have struggled to find data relating to how many asylum seekers have cited their apparent conversion to Christianity.
Meanwhile, The Times reports that Ezedi was granted asylum despite "multiple inconsistencies" in his application.
The Home Office twice rejected Ezedi’s asylum claim but he successfully lodged an appeal at an immigration tribunal in October 2020 and was granted refugee status in 2021 or 2022.
LATEST DEVELOPMENTS
James Cleverly has called for an investigation
PAA source said: "He was rejected on the basis of not being completely honest about other aspects of his life...He was not being truthful and was trying to cover up other things in his life."
It has been reported that Ezedi was given a refrence by a priest from the Diocese of Hexham and Newcastle, who said he was "wholly committed" to the Christian faith.
A spokesman for the diocese said: "After checking local parish records and central records, and after consulting with clergy, we have no indication that Abdul Ezedi was received into the Catholic faith in this diocese, or that a Catholic priest of this diocese gave him a reference.
"We do not know which Christian church received him, nor which Christian minister gave him a reference."
Abdul Ezedi reportedly converted to Christianity before having his asylum claim approved
Metropolitan PoliceThe Catholic Herald reported that the diocese said that Ezedi had visited the diocese’s Justice and Peace Refugee Project.
The scheme hands out food and toiletries to those referred by the St Vincent de Paul Society.
The project is not involved in asylum claims and does not help people to convert to Christianity, but is a "charitable venture which assists a wide range of people who come to us in need."
The spokesman added: "The diocese will assist the police investigations in any way we can. We keep the victims in our prayers and hope that justice is done soon."
