[UK] Home Office 'failed to discuss restart of asylum evictions with local authorities'

The Home Office did not discuss the decision to restart asylum evictions with local authorities, it has been revealed, despite concerns about the immediate impact on homelessness and heightened risks of coronavirus transmission.

Councils were not briefed about the change in policy before it was announced in mid-September, a freedom of information investigation by the Independent online newspaper showed, underlining that all 26 councils that responded said there had been no consultation with ministers.

The Home Office lifted the ban on asylum evictions, which had been brought in at the start of the pandemic, on 15 September. The change meant the resumption of evictions of refused asylum seekers with “with immediate effect”, putting thousands of people housed in emergency shelter at sudden risk of street homelessness.

Source: https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2020/nov/14/home-office-failed-to-discuss-restart-of-asylum-evictions-with-local-authorities

Publication: The Guardian

Writer: Clea Skopeliti