Seventy-Sixth Report - The Asylum Transformation Programme

Select Committee
Public Accounts Committee HC 1334 27 October 2023
Report Status Government responded
Conclusions & Recommendations 23 items (8 recs)
Source View on Parliament website
Government Response (AI assessment · 23 of 23 classified)
Accepted 14
Not Addressed 2
Rejected 7
Government response
Treasury minutes: Government response to the Committee of Public Accounts on the Seventy-sixth report from Session 2022-23 · published 14 Feb 2024
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Clear

Recommendations & Conclusions

7 results
3 Conclusion Rejected
Set out clear timeline to reduce and cease using hotels for asylum accommodation
Conclusion
The Home Office does not have a credible plan for ending the use of hotels to accommodate people waiting for a decision and the unacceptable cost this creates. The Home Office spent £2.3 billion on hotels in 2022–23 to accommodate … Read more
Government Response Summary
The government disagrees with the recommendation, explaining that the use of hotels was a short-term measure and a plan is in place to reduce reliance, including closing over 50 hotels by January 2024. However, it states that modelling future demand is complex and uncertain, thus not committing to a specific date for ceasing hotel use.
HM Treasury
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5 Conclusion Rejected
Set out detailed measures to identify vulnerabilities and manage risks for asylum seekers sharing accommodation
Conclusion
The Home Office does not have adequate safeguards to protect against the risks of vulnerable people having to share accommodation with strangers. The Home Office has written to councils informing them that the number of people staying in hotels will … Read more
Government Response Summary
The government disagrees with the recommendation, explaining that it already has a comprehensive safeguarding approach in place, with existing strategies, trained staff, collaboration with stakeholders, robust processes, and a Safeguarding Hub to identify vulnerabilities and manage risks for asylum seekers.
HM Treasury
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6 Recommendation Rejected
Publish updated business case for asylum transformation programme, clarifying intentions and impacts
Recommendation
The Home Office failed to convince us that it understands the full implications of its programme on the wider asylum system, affecting the ability of others to plan. The current business case for the asylum and protection transformation programme is … Read more
Government Response Summary
The government disagrees with the recommendation, stating it does not intend to publish the business case as it is not standard practice. Instead, it offers to hold a private meeting with the Committee once HM Treasury approves the business case, which is anticipated by Summer 2024.
HM Treasury
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14 Conclusion Rejected
Home Office delayed updated asylum business case until after legacy backlog clearance date.
Conclusion
The Home Office told us it would include a wider range of costs and benefits in the next iteration of its business case, which it plans to produce early in 2024.36 It had previously told the NAO it would update … Read more
Government Response Summary
The government rejects the committee's implied recommendation to publish the business case, stating it is not standard practice, but offers a private meeting to discuss it once HM Treasury approval is received by Summer 2024.
HM Treasury
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15 Conclusion Rejected
Home Office significantly behind targets for reducing costly asylum seeker hotel accommodation.
Conclusion
In 2022–23, the Home Office spent £2.3 billion on hotels to accommodate people waiting for a decision on their asylum claim and in April 2023, there were 48,000 people waiting for a decision in hotels.39 In his statement to the … Read more
Government Response Summary
The government rejects the committee's implied criticism regarding hotel usage and bed provision, detailing a plan to reform asylum accommodation, reduce reliance on hotels by closing over 50 by January 2024, and continually review modelling assumptions.
HM Treasury
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18 Conclusion Rejected
Home Office lacks clear plan and timeline for ending asylum hotel accommodation.
Conclusion
The Home Office said it is very difficult to estimate how many people will claim asylum because of uncertain migration patterns, but that it has low, medium and high scenarios that it uses for planning purposes.53 When we asked the … Read more
Government Response Summary
The government rejects the committee's implied recommendation for better planning, stating it has a clear plan to reform asylum accommodation, including closing over 50 hotels by January 2024, and will continue to review modelling assumptions despite inherent uncertainties.
HM Treasury
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22 Recommendation Rejected
Home Office lacks clear, detailed plans for ensuring safety in shared asylum hotel rooms.
Recommendation
When we asked the Home Office how it was ensuring the safety of the people it is pairing up to share a hotel room, it was unable to clearly articulate its plans and said that there “might be people for … Read more
Government Response Summary
The government rejected the recommendation, stating it disagrees and that its existing safeguarding strategy, which includes staff training, collaboration with statutory agencies, and a Safeguarding Hub, already ensures the welfare and safety of asylum seekers.
HM Treasury
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