“£100 a week provided on top of the £49.18. Meaning people in this country illegally, will receive MORE money than the Jobseeker’s Allowance of £90.50p per week.”
The Government is considering a plan to offer asylum seekers an additional £100 per week to move out of hotel accommodation, a proposal emerging as Labour faces growing scrutiny over its handling of the asylum system and the spiralling costs associated with it.
Under the proposed trial, expected to begin in 2026, asylum seekers would be encouraged to live with family members, friends, or acquaintances already in the UK.
The £100 payment would come in addition to their existing £49.18 weekly support, meaning recipients could receive more than some British welfare claimants. Jobseeker’s Allowance, for example, stands at £90.50 per week for those over 25.
The plan is intended to speed up the closure of asylum hotels, a commitment Labour has repeatedly made but remains nowhere close to achieving. More than 32,000 migrants were accommodated across 200 hotels in June 2025, costing an average of £145 per night, or £1,015 per week, compared with just £23.25 per night for standard dispersal accommodation.
The annual bill for asylum hotels has now reached £2.1 billion, a situation critics say reflects Labour’s inability to control the system despite strong rhetoric.
A government source said that although officials had presented a range of options, nothing had yet been approved. “It’s important that officials provide advice to ministers that sets out a range of options but it doesn’t mean ministers will pursue every option. Nothing is off the table,” the source said.
A Home Office spokesperson, striking a far tougher tone than the Labour leadership has publicly shown, said, “The Government is furious about the number of illegal migrants in this country and in hotels. That is why we will close every single asylum hotel.”
Payments of up to £3,000 for voluntary return
As reported in the Telegraph, there is also a separate policy that offers up to £3,000 to asylum seekers from countries with low acceptance rates if they abandon their claims and return home voluntarily. Those targeted include Albanians, Bangladeshis, Brazilians, Chinese, Indians, Nigerians and Pakistanis.
According to the Home Office, the funding is designed to help individuals “find somewhere to live, find a job or start a business” in their home country. Officials defend the scheme as cost saving, though critics argue Labour is relying on financial incentives rather than decisive border control.
The voluntary returns service plays a “vital” role, a Home Office spokesperson said. “We make no apology for saving taxpayers millions of pounds by removing individuals who have no legal right to remain in the United Kingdom, or who are seeking to leave voluntarily.”
Political reaction
Chris Philp, the shadow home secretary, condemned the proposals sharply.
“The idea of handing out taxpayers’ hard-earned money to people who illegally entered the country is morally repugnant,” he said. “We should leave the European Convention on Human Rights, which will enable all illegal immigrants to be deported within a week of arrival.”
Philp’s comments reflect a broader frustration that Labour’s approach, despite promising to be firm and pragmatic, appears increasingly reliant on financially incentivising migrants rather than implementing strict border enforcement.
Public response
Many members of the public have reacted with disbelief at the idea of offering extra payments to asylum seekers while households across the country struggle with living costs.
“It just feels like the Government is rewarding people who came here illegally while the rest of us are told to tighten our belts,” said Michael Turner, a delivery driver from Manchester. “Labour promised control, but all we see are more payouts.”
JH from Worcester said: “Surely paying all this money, and even offering £3,000 to then leave, would encourage more people to make the journey just to get the money. It’s madness. Labour haven’t got a clue.”
Bernie on X said: “£100 a week provided on top of the £49.18. Meaning people in this country illegally, will receive MORE money than the Jobseeker’s Allowance of £90.50p per week.”
Wider reforms expected
Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood is expected to announce further asylum reforms later in November, likely borrowing from the Danish model, including restrictions on automatic citizenship, requirements for English proficiency, and conditions around family reunification.
Labour has pledged to end the use of hotels for asylum accommodation by 2029, though there are suggestions Keir Starmer has privately urged the Government to achieve this within a year, a target many insiders consider unrealistic given the slow pace of current progress.
Two former military barracks in Inverness, Scotland, and Crowborough, East Sussex, have been earmarked to house 900 migrants as part of the attempt to reduce hotel numbers, though critics say the plans amount to yet another temporary fix rather than a coherent long term strategy.
