The Home Office has announced that asylum seekers who refuse to move out of hotels will have vital support withdrawn amid calls for calm after violent clashes
Asylum seekers who refuse to move out of hotels will have vital support withdrawn, it has been announced.
The Home Office said new rules mean people risk losing their housing and support as efforts to close hotels are stepped up. The policy will apply to single people with no children, the Failure to Travel policy states.
Ministers say it is a “firm but fair” approach to tackle abuse as pressure mounts on Keir Starmer to stop accommodating asylum seekers in hotels.
It comes amid calls for calm after violent scenes outside hotels in recent days. Police have made 18 arrests following a string of demonstrations in Epping, Essex, and anti-migrant groups clashed with police in Canary Wharf, London, this week.
Borders and asylum minister Dame Angela Eagle said: “We inherited an asylum system on the brink of collapse – mismanaged, under strain, and costing the public a fortune. We are getting a grip.
“We are working to close hotels, restore order, and put fairness and value for money at the heart of our asylum system.”
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The Government has pledged to close all asylum hotels – which at their peak were costing taxpayers £9million a day – by the end of the current Parliament.
At the end of March there were 32,345 people being housed this way – 42% lower than the peak of 56,042 in September 2023 under the Tories.
The Government said those who refuse to move without a valid reason will risk losing their housing and support. Asylum seekers receive £49.18 per week, or £9.95 if their accommodation is catered.
They have no say over where they live, and can be ordered to move hundreds of miles while their application is processed. The Home Office said it is on track to save taxpayers £1billion a year compared to the last financial year.
Carla Denyer, co-leader of the Green Party, told The Mirror: “This government keeps finding new ways to performatively make life more difficult for people seeing safety in this country – when instead it should be fixing our asylum and migration system so it actually works, both for new arrivals and the communities they’re joining.”
She said one of her first pieces of casework had been supporting a sex trafficked woman who was threatened with being moved 150 miles away. Ms Denyer said: “These are the people that Keir Starmer is trying to scapegoat for his government’s failure to make life better for everyone in this country.”
And Julia Savage, campaigns manager at Asylum Matters, said: “In a week when people forced to live in hotels have been faced with terrifying violence on their doorsteps, it’s deeply irresponsible that the Home Office is scapegoating people with no choice over where they’re housed with accusations of ‘gaming the system’, instead of focusing on housing everyone safely and with dignity.”
Campaigners have warned about the impact protests at asylum hotels are having on those inside. Enver Solomon, chief executive of the Refugee Council, said: “Protests against people seeking asylum is causing alarm amongst adults and children who have fled war in countries such as Sudan and Afghanistan.
“Last summer, we witnessed refugees we support fear for their lives as an angry mob tried to set fire to the hotel where they were living. Rhetoric that dehumanises people who’ve come to Britain seeking sanctuary creates a climate where violence can flourish.”
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