US EditionCost of Housing UK Asylum Seekers Triples to £15 Billion: National Audit Office
- The National Audit Office published a briefing on May 7, 2025, reporting that asylum accommodation costs in the UK will reach £15.3 billion over ten years.
- This rise follows initial 2019 Home Office contracts estimated at £4.5 billion but driven by a 134% increase in asylum seekers housed since December 2019.
- More than 11,500 people crossed the English Channel in 2025, while hotels accommodated 35% of asylum seekers but consumed 76% of the annual £1.7 billion contract costs.
- Contractors Clearsprings, Serco, and Mears earned average 7% profit margins, with underperformance penalties of £4 million applied and some sites like Stay Belvedere Hotels ended due to poor performance.
- The Home Affairs Committee plans to investigate the cost surge and quality of support, while the government aims to reduce hotel use, speed decision-making, and save £4 billion by 2026.
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Cost of Housing Migrants Set to Triple.
PULSE POINTS:What Happened: The cost of accommodating asylum seekers in the United Kingdom is now projected to be $20.3 billion, triple the initial $6 billion estimate by the Home Office. Who’s Involved: The British government, the National Audit Office (NAO), Serco, Mears, Clearsprings, and Britain’s Home Office. Where & When: United Kingdom, contracts signed in 2019. Key Quote: A Home Office spokesman blamed the prior Conservative (Tory) gover…
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Leaning Left3Leaning Right5Center1Last UpdatedBias Distribution56% Right
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R 56%
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