House of Commons · Urgent Question
25 March 2025 · 36 other contributors
Opened by Chris Philp Con Croydon South
Summarised by AI from the official record, so it can contain mistakes.
Chris Philp raised concerns about asylum hotels and illegal channel crossings 2025-03-25 in the House of Commons. A government minister responded. Other MPs also contributed.
Key points
MPs spoke in turn to share their views and ask questions. Here's what each person said.
Opened the debate
Will the Minister confirm that asylum hotels are still in use despite promises to end their use? The number of illegal immigrants staying in these hotels has risen by 8,000 since the general election and is costing taxpayers around £2 billion a year. Additionally, will she address the increasing number of people crossing the English Channel illegally?
Question
The use of asylum hotels has risen since the election. When will the Government end their use?
Minister reply
We inherited a chaotic system and are getting it under control, but by definition, resolving this backlog takes time.
Question
Will the Minister commit to reforming the asylum system seriously, including scrutinising contracts when the break clause comes up next year?
Minister reply
We are looking at how we can get better value for money from existing contracts. We will not tolerate poor performance and have taken action against Stay Belvedere Hotels Ltd.
Question
When does the Minister think that asylum processing will speed up to reduce the backlog?
Minister reply
Asylum processing has increased significantly, but there is a legacy of appeals built up. We are looking at what we can do to expedite this.
Question
Can Ministers provide any indication when the hotel in South Ribble will cease being used as an asylum hotel?
Minister reply
We aim to get out of hotels as quickly as possible, but specific dates are not feasible due to the need to process appeals and first decisions.
Question
Can the Minister confirm if the earliest the contract can be broken is September next year?
Minister reply
We have withdrawn approval for Stay Belvedere Hotels Ltd to continue in the supply chain, but specific dates are not provided due to ongoing negotiations.
Question
Will my hon. Friend commit to renegotiating contracts or breaking them for good to prioritise public value for money?
Minister reply
We are driving value for money with existing contracts and exploring alternative supply options.
Question
The constituency has more than 2,000 asylum seekers in hotels. Will the Minister ensure that new contractual arrangements involve full consultation with frontline organisations to learn from past performance?
Minister reply
I am happy to meet with the right hon. Gentleman to discuss his experiences regarding Stay Belvedere Hotels Ltd and Clearsprings Ready Homes.
Question
Is it wise to allow asylum seekers to work after being in the country for three months to reduce costs and help integrate those who will be successful?
Minister reply
Those who have not had their claims processed within a year through no fault of their own are allowed access to work. Early access would likely create more demand for illegal entry.
Question
Does the Minister agree that the Opposition needs to support the Border Security, Asylum and Immigration Bill to empower the National Crime Agency against smuggling gangs?
Minister reply
The Bill will create counter-terrorism powers to tackle crossings and disrupt criminal gangs. The Minister criticises the previous Government for allowing these gangs to flourish.
Question
When in opposition, Labour talked tough but failed to implement serious proposals to reduce small boat arrivals; can the Minister provide such measures now?
Minister reply
The right hon. Gentleman's argument about Wethersfield is odd since it still does not hold numbers planned by his Government. The Minister expects support for counter-terrorism powers in the Bill.
Question
Will illegal workplace raids and arrests continue to increase at pace to send a clear message that UK will not tolerate abuse of asylum system?
Minister reply
Yes, we must crack down on the abuse of the asylum system and exploitation by criminal gangs.
Question
Can the Minister confirm that there will be no Rwanda-style deportation scheme introduced under this Government?
Minister reply
The Minister does not comment on leaks but reiterates that a third-country deportation scheme was cancelled.
Question
What assurances can the Minister give constituents about Napier barracks being operated properly until closure in September?
Minister reply
The site will be operated properly; my hon. Friend is welcome to discuss any details with me.
Question
How does the Government plan to deport people who have destroyed their documents so that we do not know their country of origin?
Minister reply
The right hon. Lady should remember that the Rwanda scheme was about deportation, not dealing with asylum claims; this Government would never consider it.
Question
Does my hon. Friend agree that the only party in this House that voted for the Border Security, Asylum and Immigration Bill will be the party that sorts out the chaos?
Minister reply
I agree with my hon. Friend.
Question
What steps are the Government now taking to boost further co-operation with Europol to smash the gangs profiting from misfortune?
Minister reply
The Government is working with European partners operationally, diplomatically, and through countering false advertisements in source areas.
Question
Can the Minister reassure me that an ever-increasing chunk of a smaller aid budget will not be spent on in-country refugee costs instead of poverty alleviation work internationally?
Minister reply
We will do all we can to minimise spend from the overseas development aid budget.
Question
Does cutting overseas aid worsen the problem of illegal cross-channel migration?
Minister reply
The right hon. Gentleman should raise this issue with the Chancellor.
Question
Will the Minister commit to publishing room occupancy data for asylum seeker hotels to ensure accountability and informed decision making?
Minister reply
I will write to the hon. Gentleman.
Question
Will the Minister guarantee that pregnant women in asylum seeker hotels will not be moved from hotel to hotel, ensuring continuity of services and a safe pregnancy?
Minister reply
That certainly should not be happening. If my hon. Friend wants to talk to me about it, I will try to see what happened in that instance.
Question
Does the Minister believe that individuals who have arrived in the UK illegally should be given access to social housing ahead of British citizens?
Minister reply
No.
Question
Will the Minister agree that we need to close asylum hotels as soon as possible and give back prime real estate, especially in coastal communities like Blackpool, to help tourism thrive?
Minister reply
We do not believe that it is sustainable to keep hotel use indefinitely, and we are working to close hotels.
Question
When will the Minister meet her manifesto commitment of closing the asylum hotel in Broxbourne?
Minister reply
Our aim is to close asylum hotels and get out of what we feel is an unsustainable situation as quickly as practicable.
Question
Has the Minister considered lifting the ban on work for those waiting more than six months for a decision to contribute to our tax system?
Minister reply
Asylum seekers who wait longer than a year are allowed to work, so long as that wait has not been caused by them—that is, a wait through no fault of their own. We have that system now, and I am not considering shortening the length of time that must elapse before work is allowed.
Question
Does the Minister agree that increased illegal working raids and arrests send a clear message that the UK will not tolerate those who abuse our immigration system?
Minister reply
Yes. Illegal working arrests and visits have increased by 38%. More people have been arrested. More people have been fined.
Question
Are the Government considering sending failed asylum seekers to overseas return hubs?
Minister reply
I am not going to comment on leaks.
Question
Does my hon. Friend agree that the Conservatives neither detained nor deported, so we should stop calling the Rwanda scheme a deterrent?
Minister reply
I agree with my hon. Friend. Between the announcement of the Rwanda scheme and its ending, 85,000 people came across in small boats.
Question
How much of the ODA budget will remain after the Government continue to hire hotels for many years to come?
Minister reply
I understand that, ahead of the reductions that were announced, 20% is currently spent on housing asylum seekers in this country. Clearly, if we can get the system running faster from start to finish and we can get people through it faster, we can reduce those costs.
Question
Can the Minister confirm that it is the hard-yards mission of this Government to close asylum hotels and give them back to their communities?
Minister reply
Yes, that is our aim.
Question
Does she actually know how many gangs have been smashed? If not, why does she not know?
Minister reply
I thank the hon. Gentleman for his belief in my ability to get on top of my brief.
Question
Can the Minister confirm that although we will not smash the gangs overnight, the Government remain committed to working with our international partners to secure our borders?
Minister reply
A great deal more work is going on involving many, many investigations, the fruit of which will be borne—and we will talk about it—when it is delivered.
Question
I thank the Minister and her colleagues in the Department for the work that they are doing to tackle illegal immigration, especially the enforcement against the gangs who put vulnerable lives at risk. My constituents want illegal immigration stopped, and the chaotic huffing and puffing from the Conservatives is one of the reasons they were booted out on this issue at the general election. It is important to restoring faith in politics that we deliver on it. Does the Minister believe that the existing legal framework on asylum and returns will allow us to do so?
Minister reply
The Prime Minister has made it clear that the answer will not be to ignore international law, so we have to ensure that we create a system that is fast and fair and does the job much more effectively than the one we inherited. We are looking into how we can make changes to ensure that that happens.
Question
Everyone agrees that we must have sensible immigration policies, but does the Minister agree that phrases such as “Stop the boats” and “Smash the gangs” are just populist sloganeering that dehumanises the most vulnerable in society and serves as a scapegoat for successive Government shortcomings including the £700 million spent on the useless Rwanda scheme, the billions wasted on personal protective equipment, and the lack of investment in the NHS? That is the reason why people cannot obtain appointments with their GPs, not people arriving on a boat. Does the Minister agree that we must take a holistic approach, including perhaps opening up safe routes and efficient processing, so that when people arrive in this country they can start working from day one?
Minister reply
I do not think that safe routes would stop people trying to get into this country clandestinely. It is important that we can assert control at the border so that we decide who comes into our country, not the people-smuggling gangs.
Question
When I speak to my constituents, they accept that the last Government overspent by billions on the asylum system and it fell to this Government to make the difficult decisions to settle the bill. What they cannot accept is that it is fair for taxpayers to continue to be expected to spend £9 million a day on asylum hotels. That was a mark of shame for the last Government, and it may become one for us unless it is resolved. What steps will the Minister take to speed up processing, increase returns and end the use of hotels for good?
Minister reply
We have restarted asylum processing, and we are looking into what we can do to speed up the appeals backlog that we inherited. We will create a system that is faster, firmer and fairer so that we can get people out of asylum hotels, which are not a sustainable model for the future.
Question
I thank the Minister for her answers to the questions that others have posed. There is a clear difference between asylum seekers—those fleeing persecution, those who are threatened—and economic migrants. How can the Government gain control of accommodation for those who are economic migrants to reduce this horrific bill? In my constituency, as in others, people are sleeping on floors in the homes of family members because the Housing Executive that has responsibility back home cannot cope with demand. How will the Minister, and the Government, ensure that families and children are housed, whether they are asylum seekers or British citizens?
Minister reply
My right hon. Friend the Deputy Prime Minister made some announcements recently about the capacity to increase house building in this country in order to deal with some of the pressure on demand. It is important from an asylum seeker point of view that we make the system work end to end much faster so that we can get people through it, deport those who have no right to be here, and integrate those who have been accepted as asylum seekers.
Government Response
The Home Office discharges its statutory duty to provide accommodation and support for destitute asylum seekers through seven contracts entered into by the previous government. The current government is taking action against sub-contractors who do not meet standards, including Clearsprings Ready Homes Ltd's subcontractor Stay Belvedere Hotels. We are focused on maintaining service continuity and ensuring value for money while addressing the issue of rising costs associated with asylum hotels. In relation to channel crossings, the government has introduced a plan to restore order in the asylum system, including tougher enforcement powers and increased returns of illegal immigrants.