Instead of acting as a short-term contingency measure, the use of hotels has become a widespread and embedded part of the asylum accommodation system, increasing the cost of the asylum accommodation contracts by billions of pounds beyond the original forecast. This is the result of a series of failures by the Home Office in the design of the original contracts, and a manifest failure by the Home Office to grip the contracts and respond to increasing demand. The evidence we have examined leads...

Instead of acting as a short-term contingency measure, the use of hotels has become a widespread and embedded part of the asylum accommodation system, increasing the cost of the asylum accommodation contracts by billions of pounds beyond the original forecast. This is the result of a series of failures by the Home Office in the design of the original contracts, and a manifest failure by the Home Office to grip the contracts and respond to increasing demand. The evidence we have examined leads us to conclude that providers can reap greater profits by prioritising the use of hotels over procuring other, more suitable forms of accommodation. Goi Type: conclusion | Number: 1 | Response status: under_consideration Government response: The Home Office recognises that hotels became a significant part of the asylum accommodation system due to unprecedented demand and limited contractual flexibility. As part of the Government’s ‘Restoring Order and Control’ programme, the Home Office will des