Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many ARAP applicants awaiting a decision are residing in UK hotels as of 30 January 2024.

Relocation to the UK is only facilitated once ARAP eligibility status has been decided and entry clearance has been issued, therefore there are no ARAP applicants awaiting an immigration decision residing in UK hotels.

The UK has made an ambitious and generous commitment to resettle.

Afghans fleeing persecution and those who served the UK. The latest published Immigration system statistics - (www.gov.uk) show that (up to the end of September 2023) we have brought around 24,600 people to safety from Afghanistan and the region.

These statistics also show that:

• We have relocated 11,684 under the Afghan Relocations and Assistance Policy (ARAP); and
• 1,674 people were living in interim accommodation (i.e. hotels and serviced accommodation) during this period (though this number changes frequently, and most of those within interim have now moved into settled accommodation) as of September 2023.

ARAP arrivals correct as of around December 2023, and accommodation data, will be reflected in the next release of the Immigration Statistics, which is due around 22 February 2024.