Source · Select Committees · Home Affairs Committee
Recommendation 19
19
Deferred
Hold providers accountable for inadequate asylum accommodation and strengthen contract oversight.
Conclusion
The quality of accommodation is highly variable across the country. While there is clearly accommodation of an acceptable standard, too many asylum seekers continue to be placed in accommodation that is inadequate or deeply unsuitable. The accommodation asylum seekers are housed in should be adequate, and it is unacceptable that significant amounts of taxpayers’ money is being used to house often vulnerable people in sub-standard accommodation. The Home Office is ultimately responsible for ensuring asylum seekers are accommodated appropriately, and to fulfil this responsibility the department must hold providers to account 99 where they fail to deliver the service they are being paid for. We have recommended earlier in this report that the Home Office strengthen its approach to performance management and oversight of these contracts. This is essential to ensure that vulnerable people are housed in adequate conditions. (Conclusion, Paragraph 80) Large sites and former military barracks
Government response summary AI-generated
The government deflects the recommendation to improve variable accommodation quality and strengthen performance management of providers, by focusing on its strategy to exit all asylum hotels and deliver a range of alternative accommodation sites.
Summary of the government's response below — read the verbatim text to verify.
Government Response
Deferred
HM Government · verbatim extract
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The Home Secretary has announced that we will close asylum hotels as soon as possible, and by the end of this Parliament. This is a complex process that must be delivered through a controlled, managed and orderly plan of work. We are already making progress. As a result, hotel use has reduced from over 400 at its peak. As of 05 January 2026, there are 197. We are working to accelerate delivery by exploring the use of large sites, including military sites, as an alternative. we will close hotels, taking into consideration a range of factors. The closures and relocation of those accommodated will be coordinated and undertaken in partnership with local authorities and stakeholders, wherever possible, practical and feasible to ensure closures are managed responsibly, operational requirements and community impact and the welfare of those that are accommodated by the Home Office.
Read the full response on Parliament ↗