Councillor ‘concerned’ by new asylum hotel

Asylum seekers will be housed by the government at a hotel in Coventry, a senior councillor has said.

In a Facebook post seen by the BBC, Coventry City Council’s cabinet member for finance Richard Brown said the government had told the authority of its decision to use a hotel in the city as “contingency asylum accommodation”.

He said the decision was made “without any consultation with the council”.

The Home Office said that it did not comment on individual sites.

Taking to social media, Mr Brown said the council had received “no prior notice” from the government.

“As the city of peace and reconciliation, Coventry has done more than most to help address hardship for genuine asylum seekers, but this site was previously rejected due to its isolation from services, community safety and security,” he said.

“These fundamental issues remain unaddressed and therefore the council cannot support this action and will be making representations at ministerial level.”

The councillor, who has not responded to a request for comment from the BBC, also told residents that it was “very disappointing” that the decision had been “imposed” without a “proper consultation”.

Coventry Conservative group leader Gary Ridley said he was “deeply concerned about the whole situation”, adding that the communication from the Home Office had been “appalling”.

“Nobody told me anything about it,” he said.

“There’s a feeling in both parties that as a city we’ve done more than anyone to provide support for asylum seekers.”

A Home Office spokesperson said: “This government inherited an asylum system under unprecedented strain, with thousands stuck in a backlog without their claims processed.

“We have taken immediate action to restart asylum processing and are delivering a major uplift in returns to remove people with no right to be in the UK. Over the long term this will reduce our reliance on hotels and costs of accommodation.

“We remain absolutely committed to ending the use of hotels for asylum seekers and continue to identify a range of accommodation options to minimise their use.”

Coventry City Council and local MP Zara Sultana have been contacted for comment.