The cost of housing migrants in hotels has risen to £8 million per day, according to new Home Office figures. The annual accounts, published on Tuesday, show a significant increase from nearly £7 million a day in March, when around 400 hotels were being used.
The government has pledged to reduce reliance on hotels for asylum seekers, with a source stating the figures highlight the need to 'get migrants out of hotels and stop the boats'. However, Labour's shadow home secretary Yvette Cooper accused the Conservatives of 'busting the Home Office budget' and noted that costs have risen by a third since Rishi Sunak promised to end hotel use.
The rise in costs is linked to record levels of illegal entry and asylum claims, creating a backlog that forces the government to use hotels for temporary accommodation. Asylum seekers are legally entitled to basic housing while their claims are processed, but cannot work during this period.
The government is awaiting a Supreme Court judgment on its Rwanda scheme, which it believes will deter illegal migration. Meanwhile, the Illegal Migration Act, passed this year, grants ministers new powers to remove those arriving illegally, though it has faced criticism from figures like the Archbishop of Canterbury.
Separately, the government announced it has ended the use of hotels for Afghan refugees under the Afghan Citizens' Resettlement Scheme, with over 85% of the 8,000 Afghans in hotels by March now moved into permanent homes. Cabinet Office minister Johnny Mercer confirmed no Afghans had slept rough, though Labour's Luke Pollard described the treatment of some as 'shameful'.
