MP request meeting over hotel for asylum seekers

A shadow cabinet member said he had written to the Home Office about a hotel in his constituency being used as a place to house migrants.

Stuart Andrew, the Conservative MP for Daventry and Shadow Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, said he was informed by the government only on the day the site was being used.

He said he had written to the Home Secretary to requested a meeting about the lack of notice and suitability of the hotel.

A Home Office spokesperson said the government was committed to ending the use of hotels for asylum seekers, but it had inherited a system under "unprecedented strain".

The national backlog of applications has fallen recently, with about 97,000 people claiming asylum in the UK in the year to June.

West Northamptonshire Council said it was also given short notice by the Home Office of the use of two unnamed hotels in the area.

A Home Office spokesperson said: "This government inherited an asylum system under unprecedented strain, with thousands stuck in a backlog without their claims processed.

"We have taken immediate action to restart asylum processing and are delivering a major uplift in returns to remove people with no right to be in the UK.

"Over the long term this will reduce our reliance on hotels and costs of accommodation.

"We remain absolutely committed to ending the use of hotels for asylum seekers and continue to identify a range of accommodation options to minimise their use."

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