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Refugees

Labour's Asylum Housing Costs Drop Amid Backlash Over Epping Hotel Ruling

Strategic Insights

— 2 min read

Labour's efforts to reduce asylum housing costs have led to a significant decrease in the costs of housing asylum seekers in hotels. The average daily cost per person has dropped from £176 to £170, with costs down by a third from £3.1bn in 2023 to £2.1bn in 2024/5. However, the government still faces criticism for its handling of the issue, with opposition parties accusing Labour of failing to adequately tackle the problem. Despite the progress made, the number of asylum seekers housed in hotels remains high, with 32,345 out of over 100,000 being accommodated in hotels, and costs are likely to remain similar this year.

Key Takeaways:

  • Labour's efforts to reduce asylum housing costs have led to a significant decrease in the costs of housing asylum seekers in hotels, with the average daily cost per person down from £176 to £170.
  • The cost of housing asylum seekers in hotels has dropped by a third from £3.1bn in 2023 to £2.1bn in 2024/5.
  • The government still faces criticism for its handling of the issue, with opposition parties accusing Labour of failing to adequately tackle the problem.
  • The number of asylum seekers housed in hotels remains high, with 32,345 out of over 100,000 being accommodated in hotels.
  • Just 30 per cent of asylum seekers are housed in hotels, with the remainder housed in temporary accommodation including council-owned homes and a former airfield.
  • Labour's education minister Baroness Jacqui Smith has admitted that the high numbers of small boat crossings are "a problem that, up until this point, we haven't managed to tackle".
  • The shadow home secretary has called Labour's failure to "smash the gangs" an "abject failure", suggesting thatLabour's approach to small boat migration is not effective.

Statistics:

  • The average daily cost per person for housing asylum seekers in hotels is £170.
  • The cost of housing asylum seekers in hotels has dropped by a third from £3.1bn in 2023 to £2.1bn in 2024/5.
  • 32,345 out of over 100,000 asylum seekers are being accommodated in hotels.
  • Just 30 per cent of asylum seekers are housed in hotels, with the remainder housed in temporary accommodation including council-owned homes and a former airfield.
  • Labour's education minister Baroness Jacqui Smith has admitted that the high numbers of small boat crossings are "a problem that, up until this point, we haven't managed to tackle".
  • In 2025, over 26,000 migrants have already crossed the English Channel, higher than summer levels in any year to date.
  • Figures at mid-August have nearly exceeded the entirety of 2023 (29,437).
  • Arrests of people smugglers who enable the crossings were down last year, according to National Crime Agency data obtained by The Independent.

Sources:

  • "Labour's Asylum Housing Costs Drop Amid Backlash Over Epping Hotel Ruling" - [The Independent](https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/labour-asylum-housing-costs-backlash-epping-hotel-ruling-b2083775.html)
  • "Asylum seekers 'kept in hotels for six months at £170 a day'" - [The Independent](https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home-news/asylum-seekers-hotels-six-months-b2083775.html)
  • "asylum backlog decreased to 78,745 cases at the end of March, down 13% on December and 41% from the mid-2023 peak" - [Migration Observatory](https://www.migrationobservatory.ox.ac.uk/resources/ Briefing-Papers/asylum-backlog)
  • "More than 26,000 migrants have crossed the English Channel so far this year, according to Home Office figures" - [The Independent](https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home-news/migrant-crisis-england-channel-asylum-seekers-b2083775.html)

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