At a Havering Council meeting on Wednesday (January 21), Cllr Natasha Summers confirmed that the borough will not be participating in a scheme to put up asylum seekers in “basic accommodation” – despite being approached by the Home Office last summer.
The cabinet member for climate change and housing need said that this was due to the “housing pressure” in Havering and the current cost of temporary accommodation.
Cllr Summers told the meeting: “The government wrote to all councils in England on July 31, 2025, asking for support to make available basic accommodation to be used on a temporary basis to house asylum seekers waiting for their cases to be processed.
“Given the housing pressure in Havering and the current cost of temporary accommodation for local homeless people, and following consultation with the leader [of Havering Council Cllr Ray Morgon] and myself, Havering did not take up the invitation to participate.”
The confirmation follows a question from Cllr Dilip Patel, who asked whether the council had been approached by the Home Office for such a scheme, and what assessment had been made on the impact on housing waiting lists.
Cllr Patel also asked whether any future changes to Havering’s position on the issue would be run past the ward councillors first, before any commitments were made to house asylum seekers.
Cllr Summers replied: “If anything is brought up it will be brought forward to the ward councillors.”