The UK government is planning a major shake-up of the asylum appeals system in an effort to speed up decisions and reduce the number of migrants being housed in hotels.
Home Secretary Yvette Cooper announced the creation of a new panel of independent adjudicators to handle appeals, saying it would help address “unacceptable delays” that leave asylum seekers in taxpayer-funded accommodation for over a year while cases are resolved. At present, around 51,000 appeals are awaiting decisions, with hearings taking an average of 12 months.
Ministers have pledged to close asylum hotels during this parliament, but 32,000 people are still living in them. The government hopes that streamlining appeals will ease the backlog and reduce costs, while opponents argue that the root of the problem lies in flawed initial decisions. The Refugee Council said that around half of asylum rejections are overturned on appeal and insisted that “the fastest way of getting the appeals backlog down” is to improve accuracy at the first stage.
The issue has become politically and socially charged, with protests erupting in cities across the UK over the weekend. Demonstrations in Bristol, Liverpool, London, and elsewhere saw both anti-immigration campaigners and anti-racism activists gather, prompting police to intervene. In Liverpool, 11 arrests were made, while in Bristol a 37-year-old woman was detained on suspicion of assaulting an emergency worker.
Tensions have been especially high in Epping, where thousands demonstrated outside the Bell Hotel after an asylum seeker was charged with sexually assaulting a 14-year-old girl. The High Court has since blocked the hotel’s use as accommodation for asylum seekers, ordering residents to be moved out by September 12. The government plans to appeal the ruling, while several other councils, including Hillingdon, are considering similar legal action.
Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch has urged Tory councils to follow Epping’s lead, and Reform UK’s Nigel Farage vowed that his party’s councillors would do “everything in their power” to push back against asylum housing. According to Home Office figures, asylum seekers are currently placed in hotels across 131 local authority areas, with Labour-led councils hosting the majority.
Cooper maintained that while the government remains committed to ending the use of asylum hotels, it must be done in a “properly managed way” to avoid further disruption. More details of the new appeals system are expected in the autumn.