The UK is fifth in Europe as a destination for asylum seekers, behind Germany, France, Italy and Sweden.
Refugees are not bound to remain in the first 'safe' place they get to. They are permitted, under the 1951 Refugee Convention, to transit through countries until they reach one where they wish to claim asylum. This ensures that the burden of dealing with refugees is more fairly distributed. Despite this, 70% of refugees stay in a neighbouring country i.e the first safe one. Usually another country in the global south.
source:
https://www.rescue.org/uk/article/facts-about-refugees-key-facts-faqs-and-statistics#:~:text=2.,million refugees from neighbouring Syria.
Nobody is calling you a racist here. The issue is that this man's claim was not dealt with quickly enough.