The issue of asylum seekers being accommodated in hotels has been thrust into the spotlight following a High Court ruling. On Tuesday (August 19), Epping Forest District Council was granted a temporary injunction preventing asylum seekers from being housed at the Bell Hotel in the Essex town.
With the debate surrounding asylum seekers in hotels making headlines in recent weeks, some people may be wondering exactly how many people are being housed in hotels across the UK, and in their local area.
PA news agency dug into the data to uncover how many asylum seekers are being housed in hotels across London and the rest of the UK, and explained why these placements happen.
How many asylum seekers are currently staying in UK hotels?
According to the most recent Home Office data released today, there were 32,059 asylum seekers temporarily housed in UK hotels at the end of June. This is a decline since March, when the figure stood at 32,345, and a further decline since the end of December, when the total stood at 38,079.
Data provided by the Home Office dating back to December 2022 showed that the number of asylum seekers in hotels peaked at the end of September 2023, with 56,042 individuals.
How many hotels are being used to house asylum seekers?
It’s believed that more than 400 hotels were being used for this purpose in the summer of 2023. However, Labour has stated that this number has since been reduced to fewer than 210.
Why are asylum seekers being housed in hotels in the first place?
Asylum seekers and their families can be placed in temporary accommodation, known as contingency accommodation, if they are awaiting assessment of their claim or have had a claim approved and there is not enough longer-term accommodation available.
The Home Office provides accommodation to asylum seekers who are unable to support themselves, on a “no choice” basis, meaning they cannot select their place of residence.
In instances where there is a shortage of housing, the Home Office has the authority to relocate individuals to places such as hotels and large sites, like former military bases. According to a report by the National Audit Office in May, those temporarily residing in hotels made up 35 per cent of all people in asylum accommodation.
How long will this arrangement continue?
Labour has committed to ending the “costly use of hotels to house asylum seekers in this Parliament” – which could be as soon as 2029. Campaigners and charities have consistently argued that hotels are not suitable environments for housing asylum seekers.
The Refugee Council stated that these accommodations “cost the taxpayer billions, trap people in limbo and are flashpoints in communities”, and called on the Government to “partner with local councils to provide safe, cost-effective accommodation within communities”.
Following Tuesday’s legal ruling, security minister Dan Jarvis said ministers are “looking at a range of different contingency options”. In the immediate aftermath of the judgment, border security minister Dame Angela Eagle criticised the previous Conservative government, stating that Labour had “inherited a broken asylum system”.
She stated that the Government would “continue working with local authorities and communities to address legitimate concerns” regarding asylum hotels.
What are the Home Office’s options now?
Last month, in response to protests outside the Bell Hotel and an increase in migrants crossing the Channel, preparations were underway for an additional 400 spaces to accommodate male asylum seekers at RAF Wethersfield in Essex. The former military site, which typically has a capacity of 800 beds, is anticipated to house more adult men on a short-term basis.
Earlier this year, the Labour Government discontinued the large site of the Bibby Stockholm barge in Portland, Dorset, while Napier Barracks in Folkestone, Kent, is also set to cease housing asylum seekers and be returned to the Ministry of Defence in September.
Why were there protests outside the Bell Hotel?
The hotel in Epping has been the focal point of a series of protests in recent weeks following charges against an asylum seeker residing there for sexually assaulting a 14 year old girl – a charge he has denied and is due to stand trial later in August.
Following the High Court’s ruling, Reform UK leader Nigel Farage penned an article in the Telegraph urging the Epping protests to inspire further action wherever there are concerns about the “threat posed by young undocumented males” living in hotels.
However, on Tuesday, over 100 women’s organisations penned a letter to ministers warning that crucial discussions about violence against women and girls are being “hijacked by an anti-migrant agenda” that fuels divisions and harms survivors.
The joint statement, which included contributions from Rape Crisis England & Wales and Refuge, stated: “We have been alarmed in recent weeks by an increase in unfounded claims made by people in power, and repeated in the media, that hold particular groups as primarily responsible for sexual violence.”
It continued: “This not only undermines genuine concerns about women’s safety, but also reinforces the damaging myth that the greatest risk of gender-based violence comes from strangers.”
Number of asylum seekers being housed in London hotels – full list
- Barking & Dagenham 0 (0; 0)
- Barnet 645 (923; -278)
- Bexley 0 (0; 0)
- Brent 755 (875; -120)
- Bromley 48 (47; +1)
- Camden 195 (184; +11)
- City of London 0 (0; 0)
- Croydon 577 (751; -174)
- Ealing 256 (310; -54)
- Enfield 0 (0; 0)
- Greenwich 0 (0; 0)
- Hackney 459 (522; -63)
- Hammersmith & Fulham 352 (306; +46)
- Haringey 0 (84; -84)
- Harrow 0 (0; 0)
- Havering 0 (0; 0)
- Hillingdon 2,238 (2,681; -443)
- Hounslow 1,536 (1,836; -300)
- Islington 566 (457; +109)
- Kensington & Chelsea 232 (258; -26)
- Kingston upon Thames 47 (49; -2)
- Lambeth 366 (415; -49)
- Lewisham 121 (124; -3)
- Merton 194 (217; -23)
- Newham 852 (927; -75)
- Redbridge 211 (232; -21)
- Richmond upon Thames 0 (0; 0)
- Southwark 431 (507; -76)
- Sutton 0 (0; 0)
- Tower Hamlets 0 (319; -319)
- Waltham Forest 0 (0; 0)
- Wandsworth 0 (0; 0)
- Westminster 0 (0; 0)
Looking for more from MyLondon? Subscribe to our daily newsletters here for the latest and greatest updates from across London.
