Squirming Labour minister REFUSES to disclaim Home Office is shopping for migrant motels | Politics | News | EUROtoday

“But it’s temporary accommodation. It’s cheaper to do it that way.” It got here throughout a livid row over the Channel migrant disaster. More than 15,000 folks have crossed in small boats this 12 months. Britain’s damaged asylum system prices taxpayers round £4.7 billion yearly. And Mr Jones sparked ridicule when he claimed the “majority” of small boat arrivals are ladies or kids. Host Fiona Bruce then requested Mr Jones “you’re saying that’s not true?”

And Mr Jones claimed: “I’m saying it’s not true. “I’m saying this is controversial for a reason and you’re told you’re not supposed to challenge the audience on Question Time, but I’m going to.

“When there are babies and children put into that position by human trafficking gangs, who are coming across the Channel with skin burns from the oil from those boats mixing with the salt sea water, I would ask any of you to look at those babies and children and say ‘go back’.

Mr Yusuf hit back: “In my previous answer, I made the case that this Government prioritises foreign citizens over citizens of the United Kingdom.

“After that testimony, I can rest my case.

“The vast, vast majority of people making the journey from France by small boat are fighting age, military age, males, not women and children.

“We’re talking about asylum hotels, and Rachel Reeves saying we’re going to shut down asylum hotels.

“I spent many weeks in the constituency of Runcorn and Helsby.

“Runcorn is a very deprived area. And do you know the issue that exercised people so much?

“The reason is primarily because of HMOs – houses of multiple occupancies.

“In an unholy alliance of Serco and Yvette Cooper, illegal migrants are being deposited into communities and there’s no say for the local people.”

In a unprecedented row, Mr Yusuf and Mr Jones additionally clashed over claims the Government is shopping for motels.

And livid voter demanded Border Force intercept each migrant dinghy that leaves France as he slammed politicians’ report on immigration.

The voter mentioned: “I voted Labour, and if we had an election tomorrow, I would still vote Labour.

“But they would lose and we would be under a Reform Government, a Government with no plans and no clue what they are doing.

“I’ll give you a clue.

“We’ve got something called Border Force. The clue is in the name.

“Send the Border Force out boats out there, as soon as the dinghies leave French waters, turn them around, send them back, disembark the passengers and take away the boats.

“That’s how you the smash the gangs, not by flying all over the world like Sir Keir Starmer.

“Instead of saying, let’s build more homes for immigrants, let’s have less immigrants for homes.

“One of you please answer that directly.

“We need direct action. We need it now.

“There’s your savings, right there.”.

Treasury paperwork present that taxpayers will nonetheless be shelling out £2.5 billion in 2028/2029 on asylum.

Spending plans additionally present the Home Office will spend 3.6 billion on asylum in 2025/2026, £3.6bn in 26/27 and £2.9bn in 27/28.

Border Security and Asylum Minister Dame Angela Eagle mentioned on Tuesday revealed ministers wish to use extra deserted tower blocks, “old teacher training colleges”, or former scholar lodging as an alternative choice to motels and renting properties.

And extra migrants are set to be housed in “dispersed accommodation” – homes, flats and bedsits.

The evaluation comes as Ms Reeves confirmed each migrant lodge can be closed by July 2029.

The Chancellor mentioned an additional £200m will enable the Home Office to “cut the asylum backlog, hear more appeal cases and return people who have no right to be here”.

This may save taxpayers £1bn a 12 months, Ms Reeves has claimed.

The Chancellor admitted it may take ministers one other 4 years to shut each asylum lodge, regardless of fears over spiralling prices.

Some 32,345 migrants are at present dwelling in taxpayer-funded motels, costing an estimated £54,000 a 12 months every.

It comes as extra Channel migrants arrived in Dover this morning, taking the entire previous 15,000.

The Chancellor advised MPs: “I can confirm today that led by the work of the Home Secretary we will be ending the costly use of hotels to house asylum seekers, in this Parliament.

“Funding that I have provided today including from the Transformation Fund will cut the asylum backlog; hear more appeal cases; and return people who have no right to be here, saving the taxpayer £1bn per year.

“That is my choice, Mr Speaker. That is Labour’s choice. And that is the choice of the British people.”

Ministers are contemplating whether or not to permit failed asylum seekers to attraction from their dwelling international locations to get them out of taxpayer-funded motels.

Baroness Jenny Chapman, the Foreign Office minister liable for migration, mentioned there may be “no legal reason” to not enable extra asylum appeals from overseas.

Diplomats may even be inspired to boost the proposition with international locations refusing to take again migrants.

Baroness Chapman advised the Daily Express the Government is contemplating the shift when requested in regards to the prospect of return hubs being arrange for unlawful migrants.

She mentioned: “If they’ve applied for asylum here and their application has been declined, there’s no legal reason, in many cases, not all, because there will be some places that we wouldn’t want to send people back to Sudan, Afghanistan, Iran.

“But there are places where you could return them at that point. And then if they wanted to make an appeal, they could make that appeal in country, in their own country, and there is no legal reason why we can’t do that.

“That’s something that this department is also considering doing. So you don’t even need a big return hub in order to do that.”

Migrants can solely attraction from overseas if they’ve already been given the authorized proper to attraction, that means they may possible stay within the UK while they start authorized proceedings.

They at present have 28 days to attraction as soon as they’ve left the nation.

Asked to set out the way it may work in observe, the Foreign Office minister mentioned: “Suppose you have made your claim, it has been denied. You then have the ability to appeal.

“At the moment we’d be putting you up in a hotel for who knows how long, because it takes that long because of the backlogs. The Home Office has done a good job, and it’s getting better, thank goodness.

“But the idea that you get to stay in a hotel while you exhaust every legal process there is, is, I don’t think, the right way to think about this. We need to consider the ability to make sure that those claims can take place outside of the UK.”

Baroness Chapman mentioned the transfer would sign “we’re serious about dealing with these things” and “that you can’t expect to come here and stay for years, building a life, improving your chances of getting your claim agreed, indefinitely, at taxpayers’ expense.”