Asked by: Baroness Buscombe (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government how many units of service family accommodation exist in the UK; and of these, what proportion have been made available for housing asylum seekers.
Answered by Lord Hanson of Flint - Minister of State (Home Office)
We do not house people in service accommodation. Any former military sites that we do use are not available to the Armed Services.
The UK government has a statutory obligation to support asylum seekers who would otherwise be destitute. The government is determined to restore order to the asylum system so that it operates swiftly, firmly, and fairly; and ensures the rules are properly enforced. We have committed to exiting hotels at the earliest opportunity, and in order to do this we need to stand up alternative accommodation which is better suited to this purpose.
As part of our commitment to close all asylum hotels, we are looking at a range of more appropriate sites including ex-military sites, so we can reduce the impact on communities. Decisions on the use of alternative asylum accommodation sites are made on a site-by-site basis.
Asked by: Baroness Buscombe (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government how many asylum seekers from Afghanistan and their families are currently housed in service family accommodation in the UK.
Answered by Lord Hanson of Flint - Minister of State (Home Office)
We do not house people in service accommodation. Any former military sites that we do use are not available to the Armed Services.
The UK government has a statutory obligation to support asylum seekers who would otherwise be destitute. The government is determined to restore order to the asylum system so that it operates swiftly, firmly, and fairly; and ensures the rules are properly enforced. We have committed to exiting hotels at the earliest opportunity, and in order to do this we need to stand up alternative accommodation which is better suited to this purpose.
As part of our commitment to close all asylum hotels, we are looking at a range of more appropriate sites including ex-military sites, so we can reduce the impact on communities. Decisions on the use of alternative asylum accommodation sites are made on a site-by-site basis.
Asked by: Baroness Buscombe (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government how many asylum seekers are currently housed in service family accommodation in the UK.
Answered by Lord Hanson of Flint - Minister of State (Home Office)
We do not house people in service accommodation. Any former military sites that we do use are not available to the Armed Services.
The UK government has a statutory obligation to support asylum seekers who would otherwise be destitute. The government is determined to restore order to the asylum system so that it operates swiftly, firmly, and fairly; and ensures the rules are properly enforced. We have committed to exiting hotels at the earliest opportunity, and in order to do this we need to stand up alternative accommodation which is better suited to this purpose.
As part of our commitment to close all asylum hotels, we are looking at a range of more appropriate sites including ex-military sites, so we can reduce the impact on communities. Decisions on the use of alternative asylum accommodation sites are made on a site-by-site basis.
Asked by: Baroness Buscombe (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government how many illegal immigrants who have left Home Office asylum accommodation are currently unaccounted for.
Answered by Lord Hanson of Flint - Minister of State (Home Office)
The information requested is not currently available from published statistics.
Official statistics published by the Home Office are kept under review in line with the code of practice for statistics, taking into account a number of factors including user needs, the resources required to compile the statistics, as well as quality and availability of data.
There is a difference between Asylum Seekers who leave Home Office provided accommodation while their claim is pending and an absconder. Those who leave accommodation may be deemed as missing from that particular location but are not automatically considered as ‘absconders’ as they may remain in contact with the Home Office whilst their claim is processed.
Absconders are individuals who have breached one or more conditions of their immigration bail and all efforts to contact the person have been exhausted.
Asked by: Baroness Buscombe (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government how many asylum seekers have absconded from Home Office accommodation since 5 July 2024; and how many of them have subsequently been located.
Answered by Lord Hanson of Flint - Minister of State (Home Office)
The information requested is not currently available from published statistics.
Official statistics published by the Home Office are kept under review in line with the code of practice for statistics, taking into account a number of factors including user needs, the resources required to compile the statistics, as well as quality and availability of data.
There is a difference between Asylum Seekers who leave Home Office provided accommodation while their claim is pending and an absconder. Those who leave accommodation may be deemed as missing from that particular location but are not automatically considered as ‘absconders’ as they may remain in contact with the Home Office whilst their claim is processed.
Absconders are individuals who have breached one or more conditions of their immigration bail and all efforts to contact the person have been exhausted.
Asked by: Baroness Buscombe (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether they plan to end the use of Ministry of Defence accommodation to house Afghan refugees; and what plans they have to find alternative accommodation for Afghan refugees.
Answered by Lord Hanson of Flint - Minister of State (Home Office)
The resettlement of Afghan refugees under ARP continues and we are proud of this safe and legal route for those affected by events in Afghanistan. Those who are eligible and arrive in the UK legally under ARP receive Indefinite Leave to Remain (ILR).
Transitional accommodation (TA), including Service Family Accommodation (SFA), has been used on the Defence Estate to support eligible Afghan families arriving under the Afghan Relocations and Assistance Policy (ARAP) and the wider Afghan Resettlement Programme. This has ensured safe, immediate housing for eligible persons resettled in the UK.
The use of large bridging hotels has now ended, and the Government is reducing reliance on temporary Ministry of Defence accommodation. Recent arrivals increasingly move directly into permanent settled homes where available, or into other forms of transitional accommodation on a short‑term basis.
Under the Afghan Resettlement Programme, transitional accommodation is offered for up to nine months, within which households are expected to move into their settled home. The Government continues to work closely with local authorities to secure suitable permanent accommodation and to support families towards sustainable long‑term resettlement. Settled homes remain the best long‑term solution, providing newly arriving individuals and families with the stability to integrate, put down roots, and build their new lives in the UK.
Asked by: Baroness Buscombe (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Hanson of Flint on 25 November (HL11798), whether those in charge of hotels in which asylum seekers are house are required to inform the Home Office of any residents who have disappeared and what steps are taken to locate such residents.
Answered by Lord Hanson of Flint - Minister of State (Home Office)
Home Office accommodation is non-detained, asylum seekers are free to come and go from the sites.
The Home Office expects the highest standards from accommodation providers, who are expected to conduct regular checks across the asylum estate including reporting police for disappearing of asylum seekers. A detailed breakdown of all of the services to be undertaken by accommodation providers and the standards we expect can be found in the Asylum Accommodation and Support Services Contracts.
Schedule 2 to AASC contract provides:
Accurate and auditable daily site registers maintained in accordance with the Home Office’s requirements. The Provider must inform the Home Office as soon as they become aware of an unauthorised absence of an asylum seeker from the relevant Initial Accommodation
Asked by: Baroness Buscombe (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Hanson of Flint on 25 November (HL11798), whether those in charge of hotels in which asylum seekers are housed are required to keep accurate and up-to-date records of (1) current residents, and (2) residents who have disappeared.
Answered by Lord Hanson of Flint - Minister of State (Home Office)
Home Office accommodation is non-detained, asylum seekers are free to come and go from the sites.
The Home Office expects the highest standards from accommodation providers, who are expected to conduct regular checks across the asylum estate including reporting police for disappearing of asylum seekers. A detailed breakdown of all of the services to be undertaken by accommodation providers and the standards we expect can be found in the Asylum Accommodation and Support Services Contracts.
Schedule 2 to AASC contract provides:
Accurate and auditable daily site registers maintained in accordance with the Home Office’s requirements. The Provider must inform the Home Office as soon as they become aware of an unauthorised absence of an asylum seeker from the relevant Initial Accommodation
Asked by: Baroness Buscombe (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Hanson of Flint on 25 November (HL11798), how they can speed up the removal of illegal immigrants if they do not know the location of these individuals.
Answered by Lord Hanson of Flint - Minister of State (Home Office)
A range of measures is employed to maintain contact with individuals, including both face-to-face and digital reporting mechanisms. Immigration Enforcement possesses powers to trace and locate individuals who abscond, with a dedicated team that works in collaboration with the police, other government departments, and commercial organisations.
Asked by: Baroness Buscombe (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government how many convicted foreign nationals awaiting deportation have been released from HMP Huntercombe in the last 2 years owing to the Home Office's failure to provide the necessary deportation documents on time.
Answered by Lord Hanson of Flint - Minister of State (Home Office)
Foreign national offenders (FNOs) are referred to the Home Office for deportation immediately following sentencing. The timeliness of criminal court proceedings and extensive periods on remand means many prisoners will reach their Early Removal Scheme (ERS) window immediately, or very soon after they are sentenced. It is therefore not always possible for the Home Office to carry out all the case working and administrative processes as soon as an FNO becomes eligible for removal under ERS, even when they wish to return voluntarily.
HMPPS (HM Prisons and Probation Service) are working closely with the Home Office to ensure the ERS process runs as efficiently as possible focusing on operational improvements and more robust data.
Latest published information shows that between 5 July 2024 and 4 July 2025 2,632 FNOs were removed directly from prison under ERS, which is a 10% increase compared to the 2,385 in the same period 12 months prior.
We make every effort to ensure that a FNO’s removal by deportation coincides with their release from prison upon completion of their custodial sentence. Legal or re-documentation barriers can frustrate immediate deportation. Despite the barriers we face, we remain resolute in our commitment to deport those who would abuse our hospitality and make our communities safer for everyone.
The information requested is not available from published statistics.