Illegal immigration

SIR – The quoted figure of 700,000 illegal immigrants residing in Britain (report, April 25) is in itself staggering, but given the Home Office’s persistent record of understating its own incompetence, this is almost certainly an underestimate.

We have in Britain a woeful level of prevention, an inability to detect and apprehend those already here illegally, and now a Foreign Secretary who holds out the prospect of citizenship to anyone reaching these shores by whatever means, as long as he or she keeps their head down. What more encouragement do economic migrants and their traffickers need? Steve Haynes

Chichester, West Sussex

SIR – Could Boris Johnson elaborate on exactly what documentation a “10-year” illegal immigrant would need to show to confirm date of arrival? GP Brown

Norwich