Government May Pay Higher Rents to Spread Asylum Housing
The government could pay above-market rents to disperse asylum accommodation more widely across the country, including into wealthier areas, according to reports. It is a fresh cost angle on a dispersal plan that has already drawn a backlash and warnings of legal challenges. Critics accuse ministers of housing asylum seekers in affluent areas at extra expense to the taxpayer.
Asylum accommodation has become one of the most combustible issues in British politics, with hotels and large sites concentrated in poorer areas that ministers concede have borne an unfair share. Spreading placements into wealthier districts is meant to share that burden, but paying over the odds to secure properties invites the charge of throwing money at a problem the government has struggled to grip. Resistance in the shires, and the threat of legal action from councils and residents, could bog the plan down. With Reform pressing hard on immigration after its by-election win, the politics are treacherous, and every extra pound spent will be scrutinised. Watch how councils in affluent areas respond and whether the cost figures hold up.