Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many beds are reserved to house irregular migrants; and what the cost is of those beds.

The Home Office does not reserve beds for irregular migrants. In accordance with the Immigration and Asylum Act 1999, the Home Office has a statutory obligation to provide destitute asylum seekers with accommodation and subsistence support whilst their application for asylum is being considered. The Government is determined to restore order to the asylum system so that it operates swiftly, firmly and fairly. This includes identifying a range of options to reduce the use of hotels over time and ensuring efficiency and value for money across all accommodation arrangements.

Data on the number of supported asylum seekers in accommodation, including hotels, can be found within the Asy_D11 tab for our most recent stats release: Immigration system statistics data tables - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)

As was the case under the previous government, the Home Office does not publish a breakdown of statistics which disaggregates asylum accommodation costs by type. The total expenditure on asylum is published in the Home Office Annual Report and Accounts, available at HO annual reports and accounts - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk).