Recommendation 29

Since 2020, the Home Office has increasingly used hotels to accommodate asylum seekers due to rising demand and a shortage of alternative accommodation. The previous Public Accounts Committee had raised concerns about the Home Office’s lack of effective engagement with local authorities regarding the impact of such accommodation on local areas.102 We asked the Home Office how it is addressing the problems raised with us by councils, and it told us that it has since implemented more structured engagement processes with local authorities and relevant community groups.103 It explained that it has funded 125 “asylum move–on” liaison officers to work with local authorities, helping them understand local challenges. In addition, the Home Office told us that, to ease pressures on councils, particularly from the asylum backlog, it introduced a temporary increase in the move-on period for asylum seekers, extending it from 28 days to 56 days.104 In its written evidence, the Local Government Association expressed long-standing concerns about the need for an extension to the move-on period to reduce risks around homelessness and destitution.105 We sought assurance from the Home Office about closer collaboration with local authorities to mitigate additional pressures. The Home Office acknowledged the importance of ensuring its asylum accommodation strategy does not place further strain on local government, particularly due to the overall housing shortage in the UK.106