Immigration: refugees who complain about UK asylum accommodation ‘threatened with Rwanda’ - new report

Refugees who complained about poor conditions in UK asylum accommodation have been “threatened” with being sent to Rwanda, a new report has revealed.

Asylum seekers who reported sanitation issues were also warned that the police would be called on them, while a family who complained about mouldy food was banned from the common area - effectively confining them to their rooms. The Home Office said it did not recognise the claims, adding that “we have provided those who would otherwise be destitute with safe and clean accommodation”.

The just-released report by charity Refugee Action, entitled ‘Hostile Accommodation: How The Asylum System Is Cruel By Design’, has highlighted the range of issues faced by those currently living in UK government housing. It is based on 100 in-depth interviews with refugees in Home Office hotels in London, Greater Manchester, Bradford, and the West Midlands, with asylum seekers reporting things such as:

• Pest and rodent infestations
• Overcrowding
• Mouldy, unhealthy food 
• Lack of proper hygiene 
• Infectious disease outbreaks 

Others told of issues with a lack of privacy, as staff have master keys and will enter rooms without knocking. Some described the accommodation as “prison-like”, saying they were not allowed to leave the hotel for arbitrary reasons - and were threatened with homelessness if they broke these rules.

One father meanwhile said he and his son were “locked in [their] room for a week with only bread and milk” - adding that whenever he tried to call reception for help there was no answer. “We’re treated like animals”, another added.

The report argues that the reality behind UK ‘asylum accommodation’ is “a system in which tens of thousands of people are living for many months and years in conditions that actively harm their physical and mental health and violate their basic human rights.”

It continues: “[Refugees] are detained indefinitely, segregated from communities, do not have access to legal or welfare services, and have limited contact with the outside world due to restrictions and the cost of transport and communications. They live in an environment of fear of attacks by racist groups stoked by dangerous, inflammatory, racist language of politicians and sections of the media.

“In this system, people who came to the UK seeking safety are forced to live in conditions so bad that they present a clear threat to their lives.”

Refugee Action also asserts that the current UK system allows for the “indefinite detention of asylum seekers”, pointing to how people can wait months and years “with no information about their asylum application.” One pregnant mother and her two children for instance have been held since December 2021 in a small hotel room and are still waiting to be moved.

Three-quarters of refugees interviewed were found to be malnourished, while 57% were experiencing other problems with their physical health and 71% were facing mental health issues. People living in chronic pain meanwhile had no access to medicine or a GP, due to Home Office delays in issuing documentation.

Parents also said the conditions were having a significant impact on their children, with many becoming too afraid to sleep. Others had no access to places to play, and some are unable to attend school due to it being an hour’s walk away and thir parents having money to buy school uniforms.

Niyan, who is from Afghanistan and has been living in a former hotel building in London with his wife and three children, said: “The food is often half cooked, smells terrible, and taste like plastic. It’s not balanced. My children suffer from malnutrition, and my daughter is losing hair.

“And they didn’t observe any dietary requirements. Most of the people in our hotel are Muslim and at particular times like Ramadan, it’s tough.

“I can’t support my kids’ needs. It’s very hard as a father. My two kids go to school and every day, they need something new. How can I provide them with just £8 a week each?”

Tim Naor Hilton, chief executive of Refugee Action, said: “The government is running a system of de-facto detention – holding and segregating people seeking asylum in accommodation that is harming their mental and physical health. This demoralising and often brutal system costs the taxpayer millions per day but creates huge profits for contractors who are too often failing to make their housing habitable.

“The issues raised in this report will be made severely worse by the new Refugee Ban Bill – which will hugely expand the detention of people seeking asylum. The bill must be torn up and the housing system overhauled and local authorities and NGOs properly funded to run an integrated housing, support and legal advice service.”

A Home Office spokesperson told NationalWorld: “Despite the number of people arriving in the UK who require accommodation reaching record levels, we have provided those who would otherwise be destitute with safe and clean accommodation.

“We do not recognise the claims in the report suggesting hospitalisations, threats of deportation, or restriction of movements, but where concerns are raised about any aspect of the service delivered by the hotel, we work with the provider to ensure they are addressed in a timely manner.”

The spokesperson added that “it is wrong to suggest asylum seekers are detained in hotels” as they are “free to come and go at any time” - and insisted that the food provided meets standards set out by NHS Eatwell. They also highlighted that hotels are a temporary measure, and that the Home Office is looking for a long-term solution.

Refugee Action has laid out three recommendations for how to improve the asylum system. It has argued that:

• Asylum seekers should be housed in high quality and appropriate accommodation in communities that are workable and just
• Standards for asylum seeker housing should be brought into line with those of the rest of the population and adjusted for their specific needs
• The government should work with and fund local authorities and NGOs to run integrated housing, support, and legal advice in communities and address the crisis in social housing