MPs have raised concerns that the Government has not engaged effectively with councils about the impact of its asylum policies on local areas.
A critical report by the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) concluded there was ‘little to show’ for the significant sums spent on schemes like the Rwanda partnership and large accommodation sites.
The PAC said despite progress ending the use of hotels, there were still around 300 in use, with the Home Office unable to say when it planned to stop using them.
The committee noted that reducing reliance on hotels risked driving up rental costs, increasing homelessness, and ‘putting unacceptable pressure on local councils’.
The report also says the Home Office made ‘unacceptable and avoidable mistakes’ and failed to ensure value for money in its ‘haste’ to establish large accommodation sites.
Work preparing RAF Wethersfield and RAF Scampton for asylum seekers has cost £49m and £27m respectively. The Home Office had estimated costs of £5m for each site.
The PAC also raised concerns about a lack of any ‘credible plan’ for implementing the Rwanda partnership and a lack of safeguards for people left waiting to hear if they would be relocated.
