Glasgow council leader blames Home Office asylum policies for homelessness crisis

Susan Aitken says the previous UK Government's Rwanda policy is making the city's homelessness problem worse.

Author: Callum McQuadePublished 26th Sep 2024

The leader of Glasgow City Council says Home Office policies on asylum seekers are forcing them to turn away people looking for emergency accommodation.

Susan Aitken is writing to Yvette Cooper asking for an end to the "mass processing" of applications which she says is making Glasgow's homelessness problem worse.

She told Greatest Hits Radio: "This has created around 1,000 additional people who have come to the city looking for support and a home.

"We are not saying that people shouldn't get their decisions quickly nor are we saying that asylum seekers shouldn't be given the support they need, quite the opposite.

"Glasgow has a proud record of supporting refugees and asylum seekers and we want that to continue."

Earlier this week, Scottish Government figures showed there were 2,709 homeless presentations from asylum seekers in the last 12 months.

That figure is up from 1,384 from the year before.

Susan added: "People should not be getting made homeless as soon as they have refugee status like we are seeing just now.

"This is happening at double the rate from last year and the UK Government needs to work with us to create a managed process supporting people in their transition."

We've approached the Home Office for a response.

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