The number of asylum seekers being housed temporarily in UK hotels has risen by 8 per cent under Labour compared to the same point last year, Home Office data shows.
However, figures from the last three months show that the figure has gone down very slightly from 32,345 in March this year, to 32,059 in June 2025.
With numbers falling in recent months, government spending on asylum in the UK also stood at £4.76 billion in 2024/25, down 12 per cent from a record £5.38 billion in 2023/24.
It comes as Labour-run councils are among those considering legal challenges against the use of hotels to house asylum seekers, as the government scrambles to draw up a contingency plan.
Carol Dean, leader of Labour-controlled Tamworth Council, said her authority had previously decided against legal action but was now “carefully assessing” what the decision might mean for the area, adding it was a “potentially important legal precedent”.
Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch has called on Tory local councils to take inspiration from the Epping legal ruling to launch challenges of their own.
The opposition leader said Epping Forest District Council had achieved “a victory for local people”, while Reform UK leader Nigel Farage also called for his party’s councils to launch their own legal challenges.
As Epping case could bring migrant hotel use to an end – where else can asylum seekers go?
Epping Forest District Council won an interim injunction to stop asylum seekers being hosted at The Bell Hotel, saying it had become a “feeding ground for unrest.”
The judgement requires all migrants currently housed in the hotel – around 140 men as of last month – to leave by 4pm on 12 September.
Read the full article here:
Labour MP condemns arson attack on building after speculation on social media
Labour MP Oliver Ryan has condemned recent attacks on his constituents “for the colour of their skin” and an arson attack on a building that was falsely believed to be repurposed for asylum seekers.
The Burnley MP said: “Last night in Gannow, a building 100 metres from Whittlefield Primary was set on fire after online speculation and a Reform councillor said it was being converted into a HMO site, implying completely falsely that this is being used to house illegal migrants. It isn’t even applying to be a HMO but supported social housing.”
He continued: “I want to be clear despite Reform councillors praying for one and whipping up as much as they can, we don’t have any asylum hotels in the Burnley constituency.
“What we do have however, quite shamefully, is families and individuals being attacked in our area. British families and British individuals for the colour of their skin. I’ve been contacted by many of them, windows being put in on houses where people are assuming asylum seekers live.”
What the UK’s migration numbers really show
It follows a High Court ruling on Tuesday that banned the use of The Bell Hotel in Epping, Essex, for asylum seekers after lawyers argued it had become a “feeding ground for unrest” following a string of violent protests at the site.
As Labour braces for a fresh round of legal action from revolting councils seeking similar bans in their areas, new Home Office figures reveal that the number of people claiming asylum in the past year soared to a record 111,000, while small boats continue to cross the Channel at increasing rates.
Read the full analysis from our data correspondent Alicja Hagopian here:
Asylum seekers have right to privacy in their homes, council says
Asylum seekers have a human right to privacy in their homes, the City of York council has said as right-wing politicians call for protests outside of migrant hotels.
Reform MP Richard Tice yesterday urged local residents to protest outside asylum hotels.
Now Labour-led City of York council have said that allocation of asylum accommodation is up to central government, adding: “Asylum seekers also have a human right to privacy in their home and we wouldn’t release details relating to this, including whether any hotels are being used in our area.“
We are not progressing with any legal action relating to hotel accommodation.”
What options does the Home Office have now?
Last month, amid protests outside the Bell Hotel and more migrants crossing the Channel, an extra 400 spaces were being prepared to house male asylum seekers at RAF Wethersfield in Essex.
The former military site, which has a usual capacity of 800 beds, is expected to house more adult men on a short-term basis.
The Labour Government scrapped the large site of the Bibby Stockholm barge in Portland, Dorset, earlier this year, while Napier Barracks in Folkestone, Kent, is also due to end housing asylum seekers and be returned to the Ministry of Defence in September.
Why are asylum seekers being housed in hotels?
Asylum seekers and their families can be housed in temporary accommodation, known as contingency accommodation, if they are awaiting assessment of their claim or have had a claim approved and there is not enough longer-term accommodation available.
The Home Office provides accommodation to asylum seekers who have no other way of supporting themselves on a “no choice” basis, so they cannot choose where they live.
When there is not enough housing, the Home Office can move people to accommodation such as hotels and large sites, like former military bases.
In May, the National Audit Office said those temporarily living in hotels accounted for 35 per cent of all people in asylum accommodation.
‘Broken’ immgration system spilling over into tensions in NI, DUP minister says (adds par 6)
The UK’s “broken” immigration system is spilling over into tensions in communities in Northern Ireland, a Stormont minister has said.
Education Minister Paul Givan made the comments as unionist politicians have asked for further investigations into the legal planning status of hotels in the region housing asylum seekers.
Earlier this week Antrim and Newtownabbey Council said an enforcement investigation has begun into the legal planning status of the Chimney Corner Hotel in Co Antrim being used to house asylum seekers.
Unionist politicians have further raised concerns about the status of hotels within the Causeway Coast and Glens and Ards and North Down Borough Council areas.
DUP MLA Mr Givan said the UK Government had “failed Northern Ireland” over immigration.
He said: “The immigration system in the United Kingdom is broken, it has been a complete failure of the UK Government to protect the integrity of our borders.
“That is creating tensions within our communities. I think when people are in the country it is important that the rule of law is followed, we allow statutory authorities to deal with any issues.
“But when it comes to the actual immigration process, the UK Government is failing Northern Ireland, it is failing the United Kingdom as a whole. That does create tension, it creates pressures on our public services, within our housing system.”
Watch: Chris Philp challenged over Tory response to legal action on asylum hotels
Chris Philp challenged over Tory response to legal action on asylum hotels
‘Hypocritical’ Badenoch calls for Tory councils to launch legal challenges
Kemi Badenoch has been branded a “hypocrite” for calling for Conservative councils to challenge the use of so-called asylum hotels in their local areas.
The Tory leader said in a letter on Wednesday that she was “encouraging” councils to “take the same steps” as Epping Forest District Council “if your legal advice supports it”.
But the move has been criticised as “desperate and hypocritical nonsense”, given the Conservative’s own record with asylum hotels.
Read the full article here:
Explained: How much is the government paying to house asylum seekers in hotels?
Anti-immigration protests have surged in recent weeks, with some targeting hotels used to house asylum seekers, sparking violence and prompting multiple arrests.
Amid the demonstrations, misleading claims about the cost of accommodating migrants have been spreading widely online.
But what does it actually cost to house asylum seekers in hotels — and how are false figures shaping public anger?
Read the full explainer here:
