The government is planning an overhaul of the asylum appeals system as it tries to cut the number of migrants staying in hotels while they await a ruling.

Home Secretary Yvette Cooper said she was taking practical steps to end unacceptable delays, with a new body, staffed by independent adjudicators, to be established.

The government has been under increasing pressure to reduce its reliance on asylum hotels, with demonstrations held across the UK over the weekend being the latest in a series of protests over the policy.

In response, the Refugee Council told BBC the best way of "getting fewer appeals is getting decisions right first time".

Ministers have pledged to end hotel use in this Parliament - but 32,000 asylum seekers are still housed in them.

Cooper said that, while initial decisions on asylum applications had been sped up, there had been "unacceptable delays" when people who were turned down decided to appeal.

It currently takes on average just over a year for an appeal to be heard and 51,000 cases are still awaiting a decision.

During this time, failed asylum seekers are accommodated at the taxpayer's expense.

To tackle this, a new panel of independent adjudicators will be appointed to deal with appeals, something ministers believe will act more swiftly than the courts.

The government has promised to give more details about how it will speed up cases in the autumn.

The Conservatives have said the asylum system is in chaos, while Reform UK has argued for the mass deportation of those who arrive by illegal or irregular routes.

Imran Hussain of the Refugee Council told the BBC that reducing appeals was necessary, but reducing mistakes was "the fastest way of getting the appeals backlog down".