Asylum Hotel Closures Reduce Total to 185
Eleven hotels will no longer be used to accommodate asylum seekers, reducing the total number from a peak of around 400 to 185.
Home Office Minister Alex Norris attributed the decline to increased removals of individuals without the right to remain in the UK and relocating others to alternative accommodations such as military barracks.
"Asylum hotels had been a 'point of significant frustration' for local communities as well as acting as pull factor, encouraging people to come to the UK illegally," Norris said.
The Conservative Party criticized the government, claiming it was merely relocating asylum seekers from hotels to residential apartments to conceal the situation.
Asylum Seeker Accommodation and Work Restrictions
Asylum seekers are generally prohibited from working during the first 12 months while their claims are processed. If they cannot secure their own housing, the Home Office is legally obliged to provide accommodation.
The use of hotels for asylum seeker housing increased sharply in 2020, driven by a backlog in processing claims and a shortage of long-term housing options.
This approach has been contentious, provoking protests in local communities, legal challenges from councils, and concerns over costs.
In the fiscal year 2024-2025, £2.1 billion was spent on hotel accommodations, down from £3 billion the previous year, equating to £8.3 million per day.
According to December figures, 103,426 people were in asylum accommodation, with 30,657 housed in hotels. Approximately two-thirds reside in "dispersal accommodation," typically community housing.
The next official statistics are expected in May, but Norris anticipates the number of people in hotels will have fallen below the 29,585 recorded when Labour assumed power.
The peak number of asylum seekers housed in hotels was over 56,000 in 2023 under the Conservative government. Numbers rose again after Labour took office but have since declined.
The Labour government has pledged to end the use of hotels for asylum seekers by July 2029.
It states that closing the 11 hotels will save nearly £65 million annually, with further closures expected to be announced soon.
Hotels Closed to Asylum Seekers
The specific hotels closed to asylum seekers have not been listed in this report.
In announcing the closures, Norris emphasized that ending hotel accommodation would reduce the number of people attempting to reach the UK by crossing the English Channel.
"We know the traffickers say 'come to the UK, live in a hotel, work illegally'," he stated.
"We're changing that reality, we're trying to reduce that pull factor."
Following its July 2024 election, the government promised to reduce small boat crossings by dismantling trafficking gangs; however, arrivals remained high, with 100,625 people arriving in 2025.
The government plans to increase the use of "large, basic accommodation sites to move people out of hotels for good."
Up to 350 undocumented migrants have been relocated to Crowborough military barracks in East Sussex.
These moves have sparked local protests and political objections. Councillor Rachel Millward told the BBC that the Home Office had not engaged with the community or adequately detailed its plans.
Political Reactions
Conservative shadow home secretary Chris Philp accused the government of "shunting people from hotels into residential apartments to hide what is going on."
"Those apartments are then not available for young people struggling to get on the housing ladder," he said.
"The Conservative plan is to leave the ECHR [European Convention on Human Rights] so that illegal immigrants are deported within a week of arrival - not put up in hotels or apartments. But Labour is too weak to do that."
Liberal Democrat Home Affairs Spokesperson Max Wilkinson commented:
"Closing asylum hotels is right for both communities and asylum seekers themselves, but it doesn't fix the problem; it just move it elsewhere.
"The Liberal Democrats would slash the backlog and end the need for hotels by using Nightingale processing centres."
Reform UK home affairs spokesman Zia Yusuf stated:
"It is absolutely shocking that the government is boasting about moving illegal migrants from one form of taxpayer-funded accommodation to another.
"Thousands have already invaded Britain this year, and more will follow unless Reform UK is in government. We would detain and deport every illegal migrant."
The Green Party has been contacted for a response.
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