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Select Committee · Public Accounts Committee

Asylum Accommodation and UK-Rwanda partnership

Status: Closed Opened: 11 Mar 2024 Closed: 29 May 2024 4 recommendations 28 conclusions 1 report

Asylum accommodation The Home Office is responsible for asylum and protection in the UK, including supporting destitute people who seek asylum by providing financial support and accommodation. At the end of June 2023, accommodation was provided to around 113,000 people seeking asylum, around 51,000 of whom were staying in hotels. In 2022-23, the Home Office …

Clear

Reports

1 report
Title HC No. Published Items Response
Thirty-Fourth Report - Asylum Accommodation and UK-Rwanda p… HC 639 29 May 2024 32 Responded

Recommendations & Conclusions

4 items
8 Conclusion Thirty-Fourth Report - Asylum Accommoda… Not Addressed

Home Office offers insufficient detail on Rwanda's relocation capacity and practical implementation.

The Home Office confirmed that the agreement with Rwanda was designed to start relocations quickly and then scale up to significant volumes of people. We asked about the Home Office’s ability to manage the practical implications of relocating people, and the capacity of Rwanda to accept and accommodate them. The …

Government response. The government states it agrees and has implemented the recommendation, but the response details past costs and confirms the ending of the Rwanda partnership, entirely failing to address the committee's observations and questions regarding Rwanda's capacity to accommodate relocated individuals.
HM Treasury
9 Conclusion Thirty-Fourth Report - Asylum Accommoda… Not Addressed

Home Office relocation operational planning lacks sufficient detail and transparency for scrutiny.

The Home Office acknowledged that there were many constraints that it would have to take into account when running the programme of relocations, and told us that it had developed plans and contingency options. It told us that its operational plans depended on the “flow” of relocations, but did not …

Government response. The government states it agrees and has implemented the recommendation, but the response details past costs and confirms the ending of the Rwanda partnership, completely failing to address the committee's concerns about detailed operational planning and contingencies for relocations.
HM Treasury
14 Conclusion Thirty-Fourth Report - Asylum Accommoda… Not Addressed

Home Office awarded major accommodation site contracts without full competition, citing urgency.

We asked the Home Office why it had not submitted to competition five of the contracts relating to the new sites, worth £243 million of the £253 million it had spent through contracts. The Home Office told us that it used framework agreements for some 18 Q 159; HM Treasury, …

Government response. The government states it agrees and has implemented the recommendation, outlining measures to improve cost profiling, technical expertise, and due diligence for site selection and delivery, but does not address the committee's concerns about the lack of competition in past …
HM Treasury
17 Conclusion Thirty-Fourth Report - Asylum Accommoda… Not Addressed

Home Office spends substantial ODA on in-country asylum support, citing government choice.

Many of those subject to removal will be living in Home Office accommodation, such as hotels or large sites, despite being unable to claim asylum in the UK. The Home Office spent an estimated £4.7 billion on asylum support (which covers accommodation, and financial subsistence for those who would otherwise …

Government response. The government states it agrees and has implemented the recommendation, but the response details existing welfare and safeguarding provisions for asylum seekers, completely failing to address the committee's concerns about the sustainability of current spending on accommodation or the use …
HM Treasury

Oral evidence sessions

1 session
Date Witnesses
15 Apr 2024 Dan Hobbs · Home Office, Joanna Rowland · Home Office, Simon Ridley · Home Office, Sir Matthew Rycroft KCMG CBE · Home Office View ↗

Correspondence

2 letters
DateDirectionTitle
20 May 2024 — Correspondence from David Fairbrother, Treasury Officer of Accounts, HM Treasur…
29 Apr 2024 — Correspondence from Sir Matthew Rycroft, Permanent Secretary, Home Office, re A…