Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what contingency plans his Department has made in the event that the asylum accommodation provider in the North East is unable to procure sufficient housing stock to accommodate service-users in the region.

The Home Office has dedicated staff managing the transition to the new Asylum Accommodation and Support Contract (AASC) which includes rigorous transition governance structures which tracks progress against provider plans. The new provider, Mears, in the North East region has undertaken due diligence activity across all current properties to assess their ongoing suitability and this activity continues to inform their commercial negotiations with their property supply chain.

Due to the on-going commercial sensitivities around these matters we will communicate details further in due course. The Home Office will continue to monitor and manage all Providers closely to ensure sufficient suitable accommodation is secured to deliver an effective transition of services.