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Migrants in hotels for up to three years, report suggests

01 Oct 2024 2 minute read
Home Secretary Yvette Cooper. Photo Lucy North/PA Wire

Migrants could be housed in hotels for up to three more years because of the asylum backlog, it has been reported.

The Times newspaper said on Monday evening that since winning the election Home Secretary Yvette Cooper and other ministers have realised that clearing the backlog will take longer than they had hoped.

The party had pledged to clear it and “end asylum hotels” but a Whitehall source told the Times that the it is “much worse than we thought”.

“It’s going to take a lot longer to clear than we anticipated. It certainly won’t be cleared in a year,” they added.

‘Gimmicks’

A Labour source said: “We have inherited a completely failed immigration system from the Tories. Including them spending over £700 million on Rwanda, and gimmicks that didn’t work.

We’re working on clearing down the backlog they left behind, they clearly did nothing at all in the months before the election.

“The numbers speak for themselves.”

According to Home Office figures released in August, a total of 118,882 people were waiting for an initial decision on an asylum application in the UK at the end of June 2024, down by 32% from 175,457 at the end of June 2023, which was the highest figure since current records began in 2010.

Rise

But the latest total was up slightly from the 118,329 waiting to be dealt with at the end of March this year, indicating a rise in the last three months of the 12-month period.

Earlier this month, Ms Cooper told broadcasters that the Government was making progress on clearing the asylum backlog and returning those with no right to be in the UK “so that we can end these very costly asylum hotels”.

The Labour manifesto released ahead of the general election said that the party would “restore order to the asylum system so that it operates swiftly, firmly and fairly”.

“We will hire additional caseworkers to clear the Conservatives’ backlog and end asylum hotels, saving the taxpayer billions of pounds,” the manifesto said.


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Jeff
Jeff
3 days ago

Not surprised. The Cons were using them to stoke hate. The cons are part to blame for the riots, and the cons would have been in the frame had people been murdered in the hotels by the race mob.

But looking at the leadership contest, they would do exactly the same again and worse.

A.Redman
A.Redman
3 days ago
Reply to  Jeff

..and how many times did Labour and their Left Wing lawyers block attempts to remove illegal asylum seekers back to France etc? How many have arrived since the election compared with the same period in the past years? Yvette Cooper once again promising all sorts but fails when ” push comes to shove” as she did when proclaiming how she would offer a home to child refugees but then announced that she wasn’t sufficiently qualified!! The same could be said of her in her present post!!!

hdavies15
hdavies15
3 days ago
Reply to  A.Redman

You gotta laff haven’t you. No chance of any immigrant/asylum seeker getting shelter in the Cooper/Balls palace. She’s just another politician who likes dumping the problem on the shoulders of the people so that the cost can be “spread around a bit”. This lot may make conciliatory noises but their actions won’t amount to much.

Jeff
Jeff
3 days ago
Reply to  A.Redman

No. Really no.

How many times has the UK had our laws applied, that is what you are missing and falling for the likes of the Daily Wail and far right think tanks.

That is the “Great British Laws” the likes of the tub thumper ARTD and failed politician Farage like to stomp around moaning about. The “left wing” lawyers are working inside the law. You know how that works right? Parliament lay down the laws and the courts work it out.

The Tpry party screwed the system beyond belief. That was the problem.

Adrian
Adrian
3 days ago
Reply to  Jeff

I’m just wondering Jeff, when you’ll feel it’s time to start scrutinising the current government’s failings, rather than harping on about the previous one. I mean, I’d expect it to be this year, but could you narrow it down to the month for us?

Cablestreet
Cablestreet
2 days ago
Reply to  Jeff

Yes, and look what Braverman did to Llanelli. Divided a community, and gave an unwarranted platform to the far right aka Reform and Ukip, visits from Tice and Robinson, local politicians threatened, arson attack on MP’s office, police assaulted for doing their job. These are the people claiming to speak for the silent majority.

Adrian
Adrian
3 days ago

Loads will be heading for Bridgend pretty soon by the look of things.

Amos Johnston
Amos Johnston
3 days ago
Reply to  Adrian

They did vote for it. The Home Office seems keen on picking expensive hotels in Leave voting areas.

Maid Marian
Maid Marian
2 days ago
Reply to  Adrian

Let’s hope they get a better welcome than they would have had in Llanelli.

Garycymru
Garycymru
2 days ago

As long as our politicians are making a fortune out of this “crisis”, the problem won’t magically disappear.

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