“‘I’d Rather Let It Rot!’ Furious Landlords Slam ‘Shocking’ Plan to House Migrants — Say They Won’t Risk ‘Sheltering Criminals’”

Serco is a private company that works with the UK government to provide housing for people who have applied for asylum. Right now, Serco manages homes for about 30,000 asylum seekers. These people are spread across 7,000 properties throughout the UK. The goal is to move asylum seekers out of expensive hotels and into more affordable housing, such as private rental homes. This is because keeping people in hotels is costing taxpayers a lot of money—sometimes as much as £145 per night—while renting private homes costs much less, around £14 a night.

To make this happen, Serco has been offering landlords a deal. If landlords agree to rent their property to an asylum seeker, they will get guaranteed rent for five years, no matter what happens. On paper, this might seem like a good offer for property owners. However, many landlords are strongly against it.

Some landlords have said this plan feels morally wrong. They don’t like the idea of renting their homes to people they haven’t met or checked properly. Normally, landlords like to meet potential tenants and decide for themselves if they feel comfortable renting to them. In this case, they feel like that choice is being taken away. They also worry about how it might affect other tenants in the building or neighborhood.

One landlord, Tim Prourban, who has been renting out homes for over 20 years, said he couldn’t accept the idea. He said that giving homes to people who haven’t contributed to the country, while others who work hard are still struggling to find housing, just doesn’t feel right to him. He mentioned that he has had bad experiences in the past when renting to migrants, including damage to his property and cases of vandalism. Because of that, he said he wouldn’t feel comfortable doing it again.

Another landlord, Amanda Johnson-Clarke, owns about 40 properties in places like Margate and Hertfordshire. She also strongly disagrees with the plan. She said that it sends the wrong message to people who are thinking of making the dangerous journey across the sea to the UK. According to her, the plan makes it look like, if you can just get to the UK, the government will give you a house for free for five years. She thinks that’s the wrong message to send, and it might encourage more people to come illegally.

She also said she’s worried about how other landlords in her buildings would react if she took part in the scheme. She thinks it might upset them, and she doesn’t want to cause any trouble. Amanda also mentioned that this kind of plan could attract dishonest landlords who only care about making money. Because the government is offering higher-than-usual rent, some landlords might join the scheme just to earn more, even if they don’t care about the quality of the housing or the people living in it.

Another concern is the terms of the contract. Greg Tsuman, who works at a property agency, warned that while the offer of guaranteed rent may sound attractive, the contracts might be written in a way that gives too much power to Serco and not enough protection to landlords. This could cause problems down the line if anything goes wrong.

Ben Beadle, who represents landlords across the UK, said the government doesn’t seem to be working in a clear or united way. While some departments are trying to solve the housing crisis by encouraging more people to rent out homes, others are making it harder for landlords to want to invest in property by introducing confusing or difficult programs.

The idea of using private homes to house asylum seekers is not new. It started over ten years ago when the Conservative government introduced it. But with so many people crossing the English Channel in small boats, the costs have gone up sharply. Last year, Chancellor Rachel Reeves said that the £4.6 billion spent on hotels for migrants had added to the UK’s financial problems, including a £22 billion gap in public spending.

After a news report listed towns where Serco is looking for landlords, the Home Office stepped in to clarify. They said that the list came from Serco and that it doesn’t show where the government plans to open new housing. Instead, it’s just a list of areas where Serco already works under an old contract that began six years ago. The government said they are trying to fix the asylum system by making quicker decisions on asylum applications and by removing people who do not have permission to stay. In the past year, they said over 24,000 such people have been removed from the UK.

Serco added that the list on their website is only meant to show the areas they are responsible for. It doesn’t mean the government is definitely going to open new housing in those places. They are simply trying to find ways to cut costs and provide a more stable solution for asylum seekers than expensive hotel stays.

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