Eastbourne MP Nigel Waterson today condemned the government's "chaotic" asylum system.

He wants to know how many asylum seekers are in his constituency but has been told figures are not available.

He wanted to know exact numbers after concerns were raised that asylum seekers were over-stretching vital services, such as GPs' surgeries.

Mr Waterson has been lobbying the Home Office for a precise number for the Eastbourne area for more than two years.

However, in response to his latest question, Home Office minister Beverley Hughes told him: "The information is not currently available.

"Statistics are not available on the location of persons who have been refused asylum."

Mr Waterson condemned the secrecy, saying a disturbing lack of information was surrounding the asylum system.

He said: "I've been asking similar parliamentary questions for years and still the Government cannot give me an answer.

"Even more disturbing is the lack of information about the whereabouts of those who have been refused asylum and who should have been deported. The system really is in utter chaos."

Hastings and Rye Labour MP Michael Foster has encountered similar problems when inquiring about numbers in his area.

It has led him to raise concerns with Home Secretary David Blunkett as health officials in the resort say the impact on them has been significant.

One surgery in Stockleigh Road, St Leonards, has more than 360 asylum seekers, a rise of more than 40 from a month ago.

A Home Office spokeswoman said today that numbers are compiled on asylum seekers who are supported by the National Asylum Support Service.

She added: "That information is available on a quarterly basis but it does not necessarily cover all the asylum seekers in an area.

"Information on asylum seekers who are not supported by the state is not easy to collate.

"Therefore, the minister's response to Mr Waterson was correct."

Prime Minister Tony Blair yesterday insisted it was his "firm commitment" to cut the number of people seeking asylum in Britain.

He was responding at Question Time to Tory leader Iain Duncan Smith, who said the Government's asylum policy was a "shambles".

In a national poll, 40 per cent of the public regard the number of asylum seekers as the most serious problem in Britain at present.

Only 11 per cent thought the number of asylum seekers was not a serious problem.