If the provision of protection for refugees is its central goal, then the system of asylum offered by Western states is currently in deep crisis. Over the last few decades, liberal democratic states have put in place barrier after barrier to prevent the arrival of rising numbers of refugees, as well as individuals on the move to escape grinding poverty or lack of opportunity. These barriers may well be justified in order to prevent the arrival of economic migrants, but they also halt the movement and punish the entry of those fleeing persecution and great danger. Perversely, that some lucky individuals manage to slip through the net of restrictions and ultimately gain refugee status (or some other form of protection) is taken as evidence by governments that the institution of asylum is alive and well; or, just as erroneously, that their ethical (and legal) responsibilities to assist refugees are being met. Yet the current response of Western states to refugees and asylum seekers is characterised by a kind of ‘organized hypocrisy’.