One hundred and fifty asylum hotels will be closed by the
beginning of May, reducing the strain of illegal migration on
local communities, as discussions progress between the Home
Office and the local council on the future use of RAF Scampton.
The department is making rapid progress on returning hotels to
communities, building on the closure of the hundredth hotel last
month, and moving residents into large sites and the private
rented sector.
More hotels will be closed in due course, delivering on the Home
Secretary's promise to reduce the use of this type of
accommodation.
This means there are 20,000 fewer asylum seekers in hotels than
six months ago, down from more than 56,000 at the end of
September 2023 – a reduction of 36%.
Hotel accommodation, which has cost more than £8 million a day,
has always been intended as a temporary solution to ensure the
Home Office meets the statutory obligation to accommodate asylum
seekers who would otherwise be destitute during a period of
unprecedented numbers of small boat arrivals.
The Home Office continues to negotiate with a range of
accommodation providers to find the most affordable accommodation
to ensure the greatest value for money and reduce reliance on
hotels. Such accommodation relieves pressure on communities and
manages asylum seekers in a more appropriate way, bringing the UK
in line with the approach taken by other countries in
Europe.
Large sites, such as former military sites and barges, reduce
demand on an already pressured private rental market, and their
larger capacity allows the Home Office to be agile in responding
to fluctuations in demand.
Home Secretary James Cleverly said:
“We promised to end the use of asylum hotels and house asylum
seekers at more appropriate, cheaper accommodation; we are doing
that at a rapid pace.
“These closures deliver on the government's plan to cut the use
of hotels in the asylum system and we will keep going until the
last hotel is closed.”
Alongside hotel closures, the government committed at the end of
March to accommodating a smaller number of asylum seekers at RAF
Scampton for the shortest possible time in response to local
concerns.
The government recognises the heritage assets of Scampton, the
vital role it played in the Second World War and the importance
of the site to the local community.
The site, which has not yet been opened, is equipped with medical
and security services, and the Home Office has limited occupancy
to 800 people – rather than 2,000 as originally proposed – to
minimise the impact on community cohesion.
The Home Office and West Lindsey District Council continue to
work together towards a joint agreement to give greater clarity
on the future use of the site for asylum seekers and the
community. Those discussions are progressing and we will set out
further details in the coming weeks.
The government wants the site to benefit the local community for
the long term and be redeveloped for other uses such as tourism,
education and research.
The reduction in hotel use is just one part of the government's
relentless action to reduce the strain illegal migration
continues to place on British taxpayers. Ultimately, the best way
to save money is by deterring people from coming to the UK
illegally in the first place, and our partnership with Rwanda
intends to do just that.
Government action to crack down on criminals, deter migrants from
making dangerous crossings and, alongside our French
counterparts, intercept vessels, saw a reduction in small boat
crossings by 36% last year. The government also continues to run
campaigns to deter would-be migrants from beginning perilous
journeys.
ENDS
Notes to editors:
- For more information on asylum
hotels, please see:https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/asylum-hotels-exit-summary-information/asylum-hotel-summary-and-faq.
- A hotel is considered closed for
housing asylum seekers once our contract with it has ended. The
future of these hotels is decided by the hoteliers.
- It is our long-standing policy that
we don't comment on the names and locations of individual asylum
hotels, or the number of hotels in operation. Local MPs are kept
informed on hotel closures via letters confirming
this.
- The data on the number of asylum
seekers in hotels is provisional. Finalised data to the end of
March 2024 will be published in the quarterly Immigration System
Statistics on 23 May 2024.
- The government has said that during
the normal operation of Scampton the population will not exceed
800 asylum seekers. However, if capacity is required to deal with
higher than forecast small boat arrivals, additional bedspaces
(about 300) might be used for short and defined periods of time.
If this is the case, there will be a detailed schedule of
activity to return the site to a maximum population of 800 as
soon as possible. Originally, a total of 2,000 asylum seekers
were to be accommodated at the site.
