Asked by: Kerry McCarthy (Labour - Bristol East)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what steps he is taking to ensure adequate access to free immigration advice in (a) Bristol and (b) the South West.
Answered by Sarah Sackman - Minister of State (Ministry of Justice)
We are committed to making sure timely advice is there for those who need it, and this sits right at the heart of our vision for a better, more effective justice system.
We have confirmed we will be uplifting housing and immigration legal aid fees. This represents a significant investment – the first since 1996 – resulting in an increase of £20 million a year once fully implemented.
We are also supporting the sector through targeted grants. The Government is funding the costs of accreditation for immigration and asylum caseworkers, providing up to £1.4 million in 2024 and a further £1.7 million in 2025.
The Legal Aid Agency (LAA) is responsible for commissioning legal aid services, and it monitors the numbers of providers in each procurement area and across all categories of law. It takes operational action where it can, to respond to market pressures that may arise and works closely with the Ministry of Justice on policy solutions concerning the supply of legal aid.
In response to challenges around the supply of legal aid providers in the south-west, the Legal Aid Agency (LAA) put in place a list of immigration providers in England and Wales who are willing and able to provide immigration advice to individuals from the Southwest who are unable to find a local provider. This list remains in force and is regularly updated and provided to individuals that call the Civil Legal Aid advice line, as well as being published/accessible on the LAA’s website.
Beyond legal aid, the Ministry of Justice is funding the delivery of wider legal support services, which provide advice and support to people facing social welfare legal problems, including immigration issues. In 2025-26 we are providing over £6 million of grant funding to 60 frontline organisations to improve access to legal support and information, both in person and online, to help people resolve their problems as early as possible. This includes funding for organisations such as some regional Citizens Advice, Law Centres (including Bristol Law Centre), Asylum Support Appeals Project, Devon and Cornwall Refugee Support, as well as AdviceNow, which provides online support on their website across a range of civil, family and tribunal problems.
Asked by: Andrew Mitchell (Conservative - Sutton Coldfield)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment her Department has made of the value for money of the contract to house asylum seekers in the Ramada hotel in Sutton Coldfield constituency.
Answered by Alex Norris - Minister of State (Home Office)
For the safety and security of those we accommodate and our staff, the Home Office does not comment publicly on sites which may or may not be utilised to accommodate asylum seekers.
This Government recognises that hotels are not a sustainable or cost-effective solution for accommodating asylum seekers and remains committed to ending their use, already reducing the number in operation. We do not provide a running commentary on hotel numbers, our objective is to close all asylum hotels by the end of this Parliament, reducing costs to the taxpayer and restoring control to local communities.
Asked by: Nick Timothy (Conservative - West Suffolk)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what estimate her Department has made of the (a) total cost and (b) average cost per asylum seeker of adopting Crowborough Training Camp to house asylum seekers; and how much funding her Department plans to provide to Wealden District Council for each asylum seeker.
Answered by Alex Norris - Minister of State (Home Office)
Lessons have been learned from inherited acquisitions of large sites under the previous government, which we are implementing to inform our future accommodation procurement. We are confident that the level of due diligence carried out on sites has improved, and that value for money assessments take place at the appropriate stage. We are working closely with key stakeholders including local health partners to minimise the impact on the local community. Costs will be included in the Departments Annual Report and Accounts in the normal way.
Asked by: Wendy Morton (Conservative - Aldridge-Brownhills)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of closing asylum accommodation hotels on (a) levels of demand for Houses of Multiple Occupation(HMOs), (b) local housing stock and (c) local public services; and how many asylum seekers will be rehoused in HMOs.
Answered by Alex Norris - Minister of State (Home Office)
The Home Office has, since 2022, operated a system of Full Dispersal which works in partnership with Local Government to ensure that asylum accommodation is spread equitably and fairly across the United Kingdom. Procurement of accommodation is driven by a set of evidence-based plans, which are refreshed every six months with Local Government and which consider a range of factors, including the availability of housing, pressure on services and community cohesion, to ensure that no one area is overburdened.
Data, published quarterly, on the number of supported asylum seekers in accommodation, including accommodation type, can be found within the Asy_D11 tab of our most recent statistics release. Immigration system statistics data tables - www.gov.uk/government/collections/immigration-statistics-quarterly-release
Asked by: John Hayes (Conservative - South Holland and The Deepings)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether she plans to house asylum seekers in South Holland and the Deepings constituency.
Answered by Alex Norris - Minister of State (Home Office)
The priority is to ensure that the procurement of secure, safe and sustainable dispersed accommodation is carried out in a fair and equitable manner so that the Home Office continues to meet its statutory obligations while also carefully considering the impact on local areas.
The Home Office operates a Full Dispersal model which works to ensure that asylum accommodation is equitably and fairly spread out across the country. Dispersed accommodation offers accommodation that delivers better value for money for the taxpayer and helps the Home Office work towards the fair and equitable spread of accommodation. The Home Office continues to work with local government to allocate asylum seekers based on a range of evidence, including the availability of housing, pressure on services and community cohesion.
Asked by: Jim Shannon (Democratic Unionist Party - Strangford)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps she is taking to ensure police officers are able to perform day to day duties during protests outside hotels housing migrants.
Answered by Sarah Jones - Minister of State (Home Office)
The Government recognises the operational challenges posed by protests including those taking place outside hotels housing asylum seekers and remains committed to supporting policing so that forces can maintain core duties while managing public order.
Routine abstraction of officers from core roles impacts policing teams’ ability to work with communities to tackle crime and local issues, as well as delivering a consistent and visible presence. However, the deployment of officers and force priorities are matters for the operationally independent Chief Constables.
Asked by: Wendy Morton (Conservative - Aldridge-Brownhills)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of houses of multiple occupation being used to accommodate illegal migrants on (a) the wider private rented housing sector (b) rental prices, (c) the supply of family homes and (d) the (i) availability and (ii) affordability of housing in areas of high demand.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
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 while their applications for asylum are being considered. Accommodation is provided on a no-choice basis.
Asylum seekers whose applications have been rejected are generally not provided with dispersal accommodation.
The Home Office consults with local authorities across the UK before dispersal accommodation, including Houses of Multiple Occupation, is procured, ensuring the impact on communities is understood. When considering how much dispersed accommodation to procure in any given area, a range of factors are considered including the local housing availability as well as social factors such as pressures on GPs.
Asked by: David Simmonds (Conservative - Ruislip, Northwood and Pinner)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the Answer of 23 October 2025 to Question 78206 on Housing: Asylum, over what period of time the £500 million is allocated; and whether the basic alternative accommodation will involve the utilisation of existing (a) social and (b) private rented housing.
Answered by Miatta Fahnbulleh - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
I refer the hon Member to the answer given to Question UIN 78206 on 23 October 2025 and the answer to Question UIN 78187 on 20 October 2025. We continue to engage with local government on options for design of the fund and the best way to deliver this accommodation in different areas. We will confirm further details in due course.
Asked by: Ben Obese-Jecty (Conservative - Huntingdon)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many asylum hotels have been closed since 5 July 2024.
Answered by Alex Norris - Minister of State (Home Office)
This Government recognises that hotels are not a sustainable solution for accommodating asylum seekers and remains committed to ending their use, already reducing the number in operation. We do not provide a running commentary on hotel numbers, our objective is to close all asylum hotels by the end of this Parliament, reducing costs to the taxpayer and restoring control to local communities.
Asked by: David Simmonds (Conservative - Ruislip, Northwood and Pinner)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, with reference to the letter from the Minister for Border Security & Asylum to the Home Affairs Select Committee, if she will publish a copy of the accommodation strategy that is now in the delivery phase.
Answered by Alex Norris - Minister of State (Home Office)
This Government have committed to exit hotels as soon as possible and by the end of this Parliament. We are looking at a range of more appropriate sites including disused accommodation, industrial and ex-military sites so we can reduce the impact on communities.
We are further investing £500 million in a new, more sustainable accommodation model, developed in consultation with local authorities. The fund will support local authorities to make available basic alternative accommodation that can be used on a temporary basis to house asylum seekers. In the longer term, the ambition is that the investment leaves a lasting legacy of housing for local communities and reduces pressure on local housing markets.