There were 15,150 requests for asylum made in the Netherlands last year, down 1,000 on 2009, according to new figures from the immigration service.

The number of requests from people wanting to join family members was also down slightly at 20,920, the figures show.
The new government is committed to reducing the number of asylum and family reunion applications.
Work permits
The figures also show the number of non-EU nationals applying for a permit to work in the Netherlands was down 6% at 3,300, while 10,530 people applied to come to the Netherlands to study, up 4% on 2009.
The number of people applying to live in the Netherlands under the highly-skilled migrants scheme was up 9% at 5,880.
Last year, the deportation service picked up or sent back 22,560 people of whom 52% can be proved to have gone back, the IND said.