More asylum seekers are being housed in hotels after a record number of people applied for refuge in the UK. Government figures show that 38,079 asylum seekers are now living in hotel accommodations, up from 35,651 in September and 29,585 in June, despite Labour’s promise to stop using hotels for asylum seekers.
Conservative Shadow Home Secretary Chris Philp criticized Labour, saying their failure to deter illegal migration has led to more crossings. He pointed out that only 4% of small boat arrivals have been deported under Labour and accused the government of allowing illegal immigrants to stay, which encourages more people to cross the Channel. He blamed Labour for not acting quickly enough to stop the growing crisis.
Labour argued that they inherited a “broken” asylum system and are now deporting more people than ever before.
The UK’s asylum system is struggling after 108,138 people applied for asylum in 2024, the highest number recorded since 2001. A 25% rise in small boat crossings brought 37,000 migrants to the UK last year.
Currently, 124,802 people are waiting for a decision on their asylum applications. Until a decision is made, they cannot be deported. However, officials say this backlog is slowly decreasing. Most asylum seekers came from Pakistan, followed by Afghanistan and Iran.
The Home Office also reported a record number of cases where asylum seekers claiming to be children were found to be adults. In 2024, 6,270 age checks were carried out, and 1,873 individuals were found to be 18 or older.
Ministers confirmed last month that 220 hotels across the UK are being used to house asylum seekers, six more than before the election. The cost of these accommodations is £5.4 million per day. Some MPs have warned that using hotels for asylum seekers is causing tensions in local communities and harming local economies.
Labour previously promised to stop using asylum hotels by hiring more caseworkers to process claims faster. They now plan to close nine hotels by March.
Experts say progress is being made in handling asylum claims, but warn that the government must work faster to free up hotels for other purposes. Immigration expert Marley Morris said the Home Office must speed up and improve decision-making if it wants to stop using hotels for asylum seekers.
Dame Angela Eagle, Minister for Border Security and Asylum, blamed the previous government for allowing legal migration to rise and for failing to prevent criminal smuggling networks from growing. She said the current government is working to restore order by increasing deportations and cracking down on illegal work.
Since July, 19,000 people with no right to remain in the UK have been deported, and enforcement actions have increased by 38%. She also claimed that asylum decisions had slowed by 70% under the previous government, but Labour has now improved processing by 52%, helping to close more asylum hotels.
She added that the government is working to reduce legal migration and has already reversed some relaxed visa rules introduced by the previous administration.
Labour plans to introduce a new immigration strategy, called the “Plan for Change,” which will outline a long-term solution for managing immigration and asylum claims.
