The Home Secretary’s asylum reforms

Alessandro Georgiou AM moved and Susan Hall AM seconded the following motion:

“This Assembly notes the Home Secretary’s consultation on new asylum reforms, in particular new safe and legal routes to the UK. This Assembly, however, feels these reforms do not go far enough. 

This Assembly notes that the asylum system is broken and does not work for anyone involved and the need for a robust, fair, and efficient system. It is important that there is compassion in the reforms that go forward.

The Assembly also notes the failures of the previous government which left the UK’s asylum system on the brink of collapse, including:

• The decision to close safe and legal routes to claim asylum in the UK.
• Overseeing a significant rise in the asylum case processing time – the proportion of applications processed within six months fell from 78% in 2015 to just 15% in 2022.
• Overseeing a rapid increase in the use of asylum hotels, with a peak of more than 56,018 asylum seekers being housed in hotels in September 2023. This has fallen to 32,000 under the current government.
• The Assembly recognises the significant contribution made by migrants and refugees to the fabric of our city, and the UK as a whole, dating back centuries. Their positive contribution to London’s economy, culture and public services has enriched the city’s diversity, strengthened its workforce, and supported key sectors such as health, hospitality and construction. 

The Assembly acknowledges that London’s global reputation as an inclusive and vibrant city is built on the contributions of people from all backgrounds, and that a fair and efficient asylum system is essential to maintaining these benefits.

This Assembly notes that net migration has fallen from its peak of 944,000 in March 2023, dropping by 69 percent year on year. This Assembly condemns those who seek to stoke fear and hatred amongst communities who have suffered from austerity and economic mismanagement for political gain, whilst dehumanising and scapegoating new arrivals and encouraging an increase in racism more generally. 

This Assembly notes that public consultation on these proposals has now commenced and encourages everyone responding to the Home Secretary’s proposals address the scale and complexity of the current challenges within the asylum system, to use respectful language.
This Assembly welcomes the Home Secretary’s vigour in tackling this issue and recognises the measures taken to ensure that it is addressed with the urgency it demands.

This Assembly further notes the estimated costs associated with the use of hotels to temporarily house asylum seekers – rising to £15.3 billion over the next 10 years – and that nearly one-third of all asylum seekers are currently accommodated in London hotels. 

This Assembly also notes that London received the highest share of asylum seekers of any UK city, with the Borough of Hillingdon, which is where Heathrow is situated, alone hosting one asylum seeker per 100 residents and accepting more asylum seekers than the entire city of Manchester. Hounslow, also on the boundary of Heathrow, hosts a similar number of asylum seekers.  The Assembly notes that most of these people are placed there for a very short time before being allocated to accommodation elsewhere in the country.

The Assembly also notes its previous position from 2023 calling for asylum seekers to be given the right to work. 

The Assembly condemns the illegal rioting that took place in August outside a hotel housing asylum seekers in Hillingdon which led to police officers being assaulted by protesters. The Assembly also condemns further violence that has taken place in Hillingdon and other boroughs targeting charities and ethnic minority Londoners, as a consequence of the toxic environment that has been created.

This Assembly therefore calls on the Mayor to respond to the Home Secretary as part of this consultation making clear to her the impact of any reforms on London and further calls on the Mayor to support the delivery of the final reforms in London and to work constructively with the Government to ensure their successful implementation for an efficient, effective and supportive asylum system, and develop additional measures to reduce illegal immigration.”

Following debate, and upon being put to a vote, the amended motion was agreed with 12 votes being cast in favour and 9 votes being cast against.