Advertising helps fund Big Issue’s mission to end poverty
Special offer: Receive 8 issues for just £9.99!
SUBSCRIBE
Housing

'An amazing U-turn': Home Office drops bid to allow asylum seekers to live in unsafe housing

A judicial review saw the government back down on plans to make asylum seeker accommodation exempt from HMO safety laws

Asylum seekers risked being left

Asylum seekers are left in limbo after claims are refused. Image: John Englart / Flickr

A legal battle has forced the Home Office to back down from plans to remove protections from Houses in Multiple Occupation (HMOs) accommodation for asylum seekers.

A judicial review challenging the lawfulness of draft HMO regulation saw the Home Office withdraw at the last minute before a trial was due to begin.

Campaigners said the controversial plans, that were already partly through parliament, would see the suspension of fire safety and other standards in HMOs procured by Home Office contractors, leaving vulnerable people at risk.

Mary Atkinson at the Joint Council for the Welfare of Immigrants (JCWI) further said campaigners are celebrating a big victory over the government.

“We celebrate the fact that this government has bowed to pressure over their obscene proposals, which would have left some of the most marginalised people in our society at risk in unsafe housing,” said Atkinson.

“Everyone deserves a home that is decent and safe – instead of treating people seeking sanctuary as second class citizens, the government must act to quickly and fairly process asylum claims, and make sure local authorities are properly resourced to provide safe housing for all who need it.”

Advertising helps fund Big Issue’s mission to end poverty
Advertising helps fund Big Issue’s mission to end poverty

The proposals sparked widespread criticism when they first came to light in May last year.

In response, campaigners from the Chartered Institute of Housing (CIH), the Refugee and Migrant Forum of Essex and London (RAMFEL) and the JCWI urged the home secretary and housing secretary Michael Gove to abandon the plans.

The letter amassed 137 signatories, including Crisis, Shelter, the Refugee Council and Amnesty International.

At the time of issuing the letter, Gavin Smart, chief executive of Chartered Institute of Housing said: “The licensing scheme for houses that are multi-occupied are designed to keep people safe, especially safe from fire. They need to apply to everyone, including people seeking sanctuary in the UK. That’s why we’re calling on the government to drop its proposal to exempt asylum accommodation from the HMO licencing arrangements.”

The regulations were not withdrawn by government and continued to make their way through parliament.

It then took a group of eight asylum seekers, represented by Duncan Lewis solicitors, to bring forward a legal challenge to the regulations. Chartered Institute of Housing along with eight other leading organisations all put forward evidence in support of the claim.

Advertising helps fund Big Issue’s mission to end poverty

Nick Beales, head of campaigning at RAMFEL said: “It is worrying that the government states in its explanatory memorandum that part of the rationale for this proposed change is that subcontractors “have raised concerns that regulation is posing a barrier” to acquiring properties.

“It would appear that subcontractors have directly lobbied the government to introduce a piece of legislation that enables them to provide housing of a lower standard, and thereby increase their profits.”

Following the withdrawal of the case, Jeremy Bloom, lead solicitor on the claimants’ legal team from firm Duncan Lewis, said campaigners’ victory was “a spectacular u-turn”.

“The claimants have achieved something amazing today: the government’s last-minute withdrawal of regulations that would have reduced protections for asylum-seekers housed by the Home Office is a spectacular u-turn,” said Bloom

“The claimants now have the enduring protection that they will not be placed in accommodation which does not meet licensing standards, which are so vital to fire-safety and to prevent overcrowding.”

A government spokesperson said: “Our success maximising the use of existing sites and delivering alternative accommodation means it is no longer necessary to pursue the removal of licensing requirements for houses in multiple occupation.

Advertising helps fund Big Issue’s mission to end poverty

“We are making significant progress moving asylum seekers out of hotels, which cost UK taxpayers £8.2m a day. We have already returned the first 50 to their communities and we will exit more in the coming months.

“We continue to keep all policies under review as we work with local authorities to identify alternative accommodation options which are more suitable for local communities.”

The Big Issue has been covering the impact of Home Office efforts to clear the asylum backlog and revealed the number of refugees becoming homeless after leaving asylum accommodation tripled in the autumn.

Do you have a story to tell or opinions to share about this? We want to hear from you. Get in touch and tell us more.

Advertising helps fund Big Issue’s mission to end poverty

Never miss an issue

Take advantage of our special New Year subscription offer. Subscribe from just £9.99 and never miss an issue.

Recommended for you

View all
Most Brits don't realise you can be homeless without sleeping rough
homelessness
Homelessness

Most Brits don't realise you can be homeless without sleeping rough

More than 1.4 million homes with planning permission left unbuilt, report finds
houses in England
Housing

More than 1.4 million homes with planning permission left unbuilt, report finds

Where will the government build the 'next generation' of new towns?
Prime minister Keir Starmer in a hard hat on a building site
New towns

Where will the government build the 'next generation' of new towns?

Surge in renters losing their homes due to no-fault evictions ahead of ban: 'This is frightening'
Simon from Chatham has faced a section 21 eviction
Renting

Surge in renters losing their homes due to no-fault evictions ahead of ban: 'This is frightening'

Most Popular

Read All
Renters pay their landlords' buy-to-let mortgages, so they should get a share of the profits
Renters: A mortgage lender's window advertising buy-to-let products
1.

Renters pay their landlords' buy-to-let mortgages, so they should get a share of the profits

Exclusive: Disabled people are 'set up to fail' by the DWP in target-driven disability benefits system, whistleblowers reveal
Pound coins on a piece of paper with disability living allowancve
2.

Exclusive: Disabled people are 'set up to fail' by the DWP in target-driven disability benefits system, whistleblowers reveal

Cost of living payment 2024: Where to get help now the scheme is over
next dwp cost of living payment 2023
3.

Cost of living payment 2024: Where to get help now the scheme is over

Strike dates 2023: From train drivers to NHS doctors, here are the dates to know
4.

Strike dates 2023: From train drivers to NHS doctors, here are the dates to know