Afghan refugees who were housed in hotels after fleeing the Taliban takeover of Kabul will be given at least three months’ notice to leave their accommodation from the end of April.
Veterans’ minister Johnny Mercer said the government would “step up our support to help resettled and relocated Afghans access independent settled accommodation and end the use of hotel bridging accommodation”.
He added: “We will begin writing to individuals and families accommodated in Afghan bridging hotel at the end of April and they will be provided with at least three months notice about when that access to bridging accommodation will end.”
Mr Mercer’s announcement comes after Rishi Sunak told his cabinet this morning that while UK was a “compassionate country that does want to offer protection and support to those most in need”, “the cost of the current approach and the pressure it puts on local areas meant it was not sustainable”.
The Home Office has previously said the current asylum system costs £3bn a year, including around £6m a day on hotel accommodation.
Last August, Sky News reported that the Home Office had warned Afghan evacuees they could be evicted if they turned down two offers of accommodation.
Approximately 9,500 evacuees remain in hotels in the UK, more than a year after Kabul fell to the Taliban, as the UK struggles with its own shortage of domestic housing.
Earlier Rishi Sunak’s official spokesman defended the plans after journalists accused the government of finding ways to “boot out” Afghans from hotels.
“We’ve made a large commitment to them to support them in the UK to make a new life here and this will be the next stage of that,” the spokesman said.
“We do think it is right to help them into settled accommodation, there will be a significant package of support that sits behind them to both help them to find accommodation and to help them fully integrate into their new community.”
The Times reported earlier refugees will be offered a property – but those who don’t take up the offer will be asked to leave their current accommodation.
The move has already been criticised by some charities.
Enver Solomon, the Refugee Council’s chief executive, said: “We are deeply concerned about many elements of these plans, in particular the risk that they could lead to people who fled the Taliban in Afghanistan being left homeless and destitute on the streets of Britain.
“This is not how those who were promised a warm welcome in the UK should be treated.
“Hotels are not the right place for refugees to live but the fact that thousands of Afghans have been left in them for months on end is a consequence of government mismanagement and a failure to work successfully in partnership with local councils and other agencies to find suitable housing.
“To expect councils to suddenly move them out of hotels by putting pressure on Afghan families risks causing great misery and anxiety for those who have already experienced trauma and upheaval.”