The Home Office has announced the closure of eleven asylum hotels across England, Scotland and Northern Ireland, with more expected to shut in the coming weeks. Approximately 350 claimants have been relocated to Crowborough military camp in East Sussex, described as 'basic accommodation'. This follows Prime Minister Keir Starmer's pledge to end the use of hotels for asylum seekers before the next general election.
The number of hotels still housing asylum seekers has fallen to 185, down from a peak of 400. Around 30,000 people remain in hotels, while over 70,000 live in other government-funded accommodation such as shared housing or military barracks. Asylum seekers are prohibited from working during their first year in the UK while their claims are processed, leaving them reliant on state housing.
Immigration Minister Alex Norris stated: 'Hotels were meant to be a short-term stopgap under the previous government, but they spiralled out of control – costing taxpayers billions and dumping the consequences on local communities. We are shutting them down by moving people into more basic accommodation, scaling up large sites, removing record numbers of people with no right to remain.' The Home Office estimates the closures will save £65 million.
However, the Refugee Council has criticised the move. Imran Hussain, director of external affairs, said large military sites are 'not a suitable alternative to hotels' and noted that the government's own spending watchdog found them 'more expensive than hotels' and isolating people from communities and essential services. He suggested granting limited permission to stay to people from countries like Sudan and Iran as a better solution.
Shadow Home Secretary Chris Philp countered that there are more asylum seekers in hotels now than at the time of the election, arguing that the government is 'shunting people from hotels into residential apartments to hide what is going on', which then reduces housing availability for young people.
