Home Office Has No Asylum Accommodation Strategy, Says Outgoing Chief Inspector of Borders

A group of people thought to be illegal immigrants are brought in to Dover, Kent, England, on April 15, 2022. (Gareth Fuller/PA Media)

The Home Office has no strategy for housing asylum seekers and needs to expand its asylum estate to cope with demand, the outgoing chief inspector of borders has said.

David Neal, independent chief inspector of borders and immigration, told the Financial Times on Friday that the Home Office has “no asylum accommodation strategy.”

“They don’t identify the lessons, they don’t learn the lessons,” said Mr. Neal, adding, “The Home Office doesn’t want to change.”

Mr. Neal, who is due to step down next month, said there had been problems across the asylum and immigration detention estate, including some facilities being inadequate.

Noting that conditions at facilities like Manston detention centre in Kent had improved since he had taken over the inspectorate, Mr. Neal said that some migrants were still being accommodated in poor conditions and called on the Home Office to send officials around the asylum estate to “check, check and check again” that standards are being maintained.

The independent chief inspector of borders and immigration, who has served in the role for three years, also said he was concerned that facilities for housing migrants had not been expanded fast enough to keep up with demand, noting that the government had created only a few hundred new accommodation spaces since July 2023.

Home Office Has ‘Clear Strategy’ on Housing Asylum Seekers, Says Government

A government spokesperson told the Financial Times that the Home Office had a “clear strategy to provide sufficient accommodation to asylum seekers who would otherwise be destitute.”

The Home Office continues to “meet all statutory and regulatory requirements and residents have access to health and social care services, including mental health support,” they added.

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The spokesperson added that the government had made “significant progress” in moving asylum seekers out of hotels by “introducing alternative accommodation, maximising space, and clearing the legacy backlog.”

They continued: “It is right that we take time to carefully consider independent reports. We continue to support ... inspection activity and are committed to implementing recommendations.”

Scotland Urged to Do More to House Asylum Seekers

The remarks came as the home secretary called on the first minister of Scotland to house more asylum seekers.

In a letter dated Feb. 16, 2024, and published on Monday, James Cleverly asked Humza Yousaf to assist in increasing Great Britain’s asylum estate as the government had committed to ending the use of hotels to house migrants.

Mr. Cleverly cited a speech by Mr. Yousaf who said that Scotland and its government “are proud of the benefits migrants bring to this country.”

Mr. Cleverley noted that Scotland currently houses eight asylum seekers for every 10,000 people, which is less than Wales and half the 16 per 10,000 that England hosts.

The home secretary suggested introducing the use of large sites in the country, such as the cruise ship MS Victoria in Edinburgh which the Scottish National Party government had used to house Ukrainian refugees from July 2022 until July 2023.

A Scottish government spokesperson said: “The Home Office is responsible for provision of asylum accommodation, including hotels procured as contingency initial asylum accommodation. Ministers have been clear that the UK Government needs to respect the important role of local authorities in asylum dispersal and should provide more financial support for them as it presses ahead with plans to close asylum hotels.”

The spokesman added that Scotland had offered sanctuary to “more than double the displaced Ukrainians per head of population than any other part of the UK,” and that the country “stands ready to offer refuge and sanctuary for those who are displaced.”

The spokesperson then reiterated the call for the UK government to open a resettlement scheme for Palestinians in Gaza, saying: “From the outset of the conflict in Gaza, the Scottish Government has called on the UK Government to use its existing UK Resettlement Scheme, and ensure it is aligned with UNHCR [United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees] to provide those who want to leave with the support they require.

“We have received the home secretary’s letter and will respond in due course.”

Illegal Migrants Will Be Sent to Rwanda ‘as Soon as Possible’

This week, peers continue to consider the government’s proposed Safety of Rwanda (Asylum and Immigration) Bill, which passed in the House of Commons in December 2023.

Illegal migration minister Michael Tomlinson told Trevor Phillips on Sky News on Sunday that migrants will be sent to Kigali “as soon as possible” after the legislation is passed.

“We are taking and introducing the most robust illegal migration legislation that’s ever been put before Parliament,” Mr. Tomlinson said.

“It’s got another committee day that it’s going through, and we’re making sure that we can bring in the Rwanda plan so that the flights can take off. That is my job. That’s my responsibility,” he added.

In April 2022, the UK agreed to a scheme with Rwanda that would have seen illegal migrants, including those who crossed the English Channel in small boats, put on flights to Kigali.

However, in June 2022, the European Court of Human Rights blocked the first flight of migrants and in November 2023, the Supreme Court ruled that the plans were unlawful.

As a result, Prime Minister Rishi Sunak introduced the Safety of Rwanda (Asylum and Immigration) Bill, which would compel UK judges to regard the east African country as safe, which the government said would prevent further legal challenges.

PA Media contributed to this report.