SNP SLAMMED FOR 'OPEN DOOR' MIGRANT POLICY

NEW figures reveal an "astonishing" surge in migrant and asylum seeker homeless applications after controversial rule changes by the Scottish Government.

- BEN BORLAND

Before 2022, councils were not obliged to house a homeless person or family unless they had a link to that area. But the local connection rule was abolished by Nationalist ministers.

Since then, statistics obtained by the Scottish Conservatives show there has been a staggering 3,500% rise in homeless applications to Glasgow City Council from outside Scotland.

The Tories, who will publish a new housing policy paper today, are committed to reinstating the rule to help tackle the influx of illegal immigrants to the city which is facing a £66million black hole due to the cost of housing asylum seekers.

In 2022-23, just 35 individuals who had no local connection to any Scottish local authority made a homeless application to the SNP-run Glasgow council - 22 from outside Scotland and 13 from outside the UK.

But the following year, this increased to 1,290 356 from outside Scotland and 934 with no local connection to any council in the UK an increase of 3,585%.

In 2024-25 and 2025-26 to date, a further 2,089 applications have been made from individuals outside Scotland - 522 from elsewhere in the UK and 1,567 from outside the UK.