Overview
- Multiple outlets report that officials have proposed paying £100 a week, on top of the £49.18 support allowance, for asylum seekers to live with family or known hosts rather than in hotels.
- According to the reports, participants would need to show proof of appropriate accommodation and continue regular reporting to the Home Office.
- A separate reported option would offer up to £3,000 to people from nationalities with low grant rates, such as Albania, Bangladesh, Brazil, China, India, Nigeria and Pakistan, if they voluntarily return home.
- A Home Office spokesman said there are no plans to implement these payments and reiterated the goal to close all asylum hotels.
- The proposals are set against hotel use of about 32,000 people across roughly 200 sites at an average £145 per person per night, prompting criticism from opponents and charities who argue the £100 would not cover typical rent and could risk homelessness or exploitation.