The Home Office announced that as many as 21,000 asylum applicants who have been waiting a year for their cases to be decided may be permitted to join the labour market to sustain themselves, within a suite of proposals to be unveiled on Thursday.
While the administration aims to clear asylum hotels, individuals who breach the law, engage in unauthorised employment or are judged to possess sufficient resources to survive without aid will, from June, be removed and have their benefits withdrawn.
The Refugee Council has criticised the proposals, warning they could raise the number of rough sleepers among people fleeing conflict and starvation.
The timing coincides with Shabana Mahmood’s rebuttal in a CuriosityNews column to senior labour movement calls for ministers to shift away from migration issues and temper criticism of the Green Party.
The Home Secretary stated: “Re‑establishing order at our borders is not merely a reflection of Labour principles; it is a prerequisite for any Labour administration to function.”
Mahmood argued that Labour’s platform ought to resonate with the broader public and be “neither the dystopia of Farage’s sealed borders nor the utopia of the Greens’ fully open borders”. She added that the government intends to introduce a new “secure and lawful” pathway this autumn for students seeking protection.
According to the Home Office, roughly 30,600 individuals with pending asylum applications are housed in about 200 hotels nationwide, while 107,000 people are currently receiving asylum assistance.
Presently, claimants placed in dispersal settings like private rentals receive £48 weekly, whereas those accommodated in hotels are allotted £9.95 per person.
Authorities aim to progress many of the 21,000 residents who have stayed in hotels for over a year by granting them work authorisation.
Should they secure employment, the plan is for their asylum assistance to be withdrawn, leading eventually to their departure from the accommodation.
The Home Office indicated that the statutory obligation under EU legislation to furnish asylum seekers with aid and housing will be terminated on Thursday.
It will be substituted by a conditional framework, limiting assistance to individuals who truly require it and comply with legal requirements.
The proposals, slated for parliamentary presentation and activation in June, would strip support payments and housing from asylum seekers who work unlawfully, are capable of self‑support, possess work rights, or have breached legal provisions.
The Home Office declined to comment on inquiries about whether the 21,000 would be limited to positions on the “immigration salary list”.
When pressed on the standards used to judge if a person possesses sufficient assets to live without state aid, a source explained that decisions would be made “on a case‑by‑case basis” with no fixed benchmark.
Keir Starmer and Mahmood have encountered pressure from across the labour movement to adopt more progressive policies following the Green Party’s win in the Gorton and Denton by‑election.
Read next
Thailand-based crypto investor contributes an additional £3 million to Reform
Christopher Harborne has contributed an additional £3 million to Reform UK, adding to the £9 million he gave last summer.
Nigel Farage’s Reform UK, which has led the opinion polls for over a year, recorded £5.5 million in donations in the final quarter of 2025. The sum also
Greens deputy leader demands Starmer apologise for false claims that sparked death threats.
The deputy leader of the Green Party has called for an apology from Keir Starmer after the prime minister seemed to endorse inaccurate accusations that he demonstrated in favour of the Iranian regime, a claim that has resulted in death threats being directed at him.
Mothin Ali said he was
Shabana Mahmood to present a ‘firm but fair’ asylum plan that could let some claimants enter the workforce – UK politics live
Mahmood to present “firm but fair” asylum framework in morning address
Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood is slated to speak later this morning, outlining her vision for a “firm but fair” asylum system.
The Home Office says as many as 21,000 asylum seekers who have waited a year for their