Record asylum claims test Labour's migration pledge despite progress on backlog

The number of asylum seekers housed in government hotels has risen in the first year under Labour, piling further pressure on

- ALICJA HAGOPIAN, HOLLY BANCROFT

Sir Keir Starmer to get a grip on the growing number of people making dangerous Channel crossings.

The data follows a High Court ruling on Tuesday that banned the use of the Bell Hotel in Epping, Essex, for housing asylum seekers after lawyers argued it had become a “feeding ground for unrest” following a string of violent protests near the site.

As the government braces for a fresh round of legal action from councils seeking similar bans in their areas, new Home Office figures reveal that the number of people claiming asylum in the year to June rose to a record 111,084, while the number of small boats crossing the Channel continues to grow.

The government has been repeatedly accused of failing to tackle immigration, with Reform UK leader Nigel Farage saying “the public is right to be very angry” over the rise in asylum seekers being housed in hotels. Shadow home secretary Chris Philp claimed ministers had “lost control of our borders”. Shadow justice secretary Robert Jenrick has said that the country “is well past breaking point”, and Tory leader Kemi Badenoch questioned whether it would be possible to “set up camps” for migrants, rather than housing them near local communities.

Fewer asylum seekers are being housed in hotels

Latest figures from earlier this year show 32,000 asylum seekers are being housed in hotel accommodation; a decrease from the previous two quarters, and a 42% drop from its peak in late 2023.