Home Office continues to house asylum seekers in ‘degrading’ accommodation despite repeated warnings, say MPs

The government is failing asylum seekers as it continues to house them in “degrading” accommodation despite repeated demands to improve the situation, MPs have warned.

The Home Affairs Select Committee accused ministers failing to act on warnings that torture survivors, individuals suffering PTSD, pregnant women and mothers with small children were living in homes with vermin, damp and inadequate facilities and furnishings.

“We are hugely disappointed that the government has not taken up the committee’s recommendations on improving the standards of accommodation,” the report states.

“The department has a duty of care and must show a greater urgency about the degrading conditions in which very vulnerable people are being housed under its contracts, including torture survivors, individuals suffering PTSD, pregnant women and mothers with small children.”

MPs said local authorities had lost confidence in the Home Office’s asylum dispersal system because the government had “failed to listen and respond to their concerns”, and implored ministers to “act now” to reset its relationship with local authorities on asylum accommodation.

Since 2012, the Home Office has outsourced the provision of asylum accommodation to private providers Serco, Clearsprings and G4S under Compass contracts. These contracts, worth £4bn over 10 years, are coming to an end and are currently out to tender.

The committee warned that some local authorities are considering withdrawing from the dispersal scheme due to the government’s handling of the replacement for the current contract. It said it must quickly do more to support local authorities carrying a disproportionate share of responsibilities, and to improve take-up in other areas of the country.

It warned that ministers had been “too accepting” of the limitations of the current system and were failing to cooperate with private providers to improve current conditions, and repeated its previous recommendation that the government should transfer inspection duties to local authorities.

The warnings follow a recent report from the Independent Chief Inspector of Borders and Immigration (ICIBI) found that less than a quarter of asylum properties met contractual standards, while almost half were deemed “not fit for purpose” or in need of “urgent” action.

Inspectors found examples of accommodation that was dirty and had visible defects including leaks, damp, and broken equipment, as well as failing to meet the basic needs of vulnerable groups such as survivors of torture, pregnant women and LGBT+ asylum seekers.

Stuart McDonald, a member of the Home Affairs Committee, said: “In the final weeks before contracts for asylum accommodation worth billions of pounds are agreed, the government must ensure they provide for a long-term, workable partnership with local authorities.

“The local authorities who step up and continue the UK’s proud tradition of providing asylum must not be placed at a financial disadvantage because of it. Equally, the responsibility must be shared more widely, and distributed between more authorities, to correct the unfairness of the current arrangements.

“We must remember that this is fundamentally about providing safe accommodation to individuals fleeing desperate circumstances. On too many occasions the quality of housing provided has fallen far below what is acceptable.

“The new asylum accommodation contract must be the beginning of comprehensive reforms that bring an end to the constant examples of mouldy, damp, vermin infested conditions that asylum seekers experience now.”

A Home Office spokesperson said the department had implemented an action plan to support customers in raising issues with their accommodation and had restructured routine inspections so that the management of contracts and accommodation standards were more consistent nationally.

The spokesperson added: “The UK has a long history of granting asylum to those who need our protection and we are committed to providing safe and secure accommodation while applications are considered.

“We consider all requests from those who may have particular vulnerabilities, care needs or health problems that require specialist accommodation.

”We also monitor contractors and their accommodation closely and take action – including financial penalties – where issues are not addressed within certain timescales.

“We continue to work closely with local authorities on asylum dispersal and have committed to comprehensive engagement with the Local Government Association and local authority chief executives to review the process.”