Councils fear ‘two-tier’ system of regulation of Houses in Multiple Occupation with proposed asylum seeker accommodation rule change

Changes to regulations on housing asylum seekers must avoid creating a two-tier system that endangers regulation of houses in multiple occupation (HMO), the Local Government Association (LGA) has warned.

The warning came in a briefing issued earliler this week ahead of the House of Lords’ consideration of the Houses in Multiple Occupation (Asylum-Seeker Accommodation)(England) Regulations 2023.

The Home Office wants to change the law so that asylum seeker accommodation is exempt for two years from HMO licensing.

It has said standards would be broadly in line with the HMO licensing regime with accommodation inspected by a Home Office contract inspector before use.

The LGA said it was concerned that standards would not be maintained given the operational pressures on the Home Office and that a ‘two-tier’ system with lower standards and enforcement for accommodation for asylum seekers could result. 

There was a danger that landlords would switch their properties away from the HMO regime to the less onerous Home Office one “which may be more profitable”, which would exacerbate local housing and homelessness pressures, the LGA said.

Councils would lose HMO licensing fees where properties were instead used for asylum accommodation "which in turn could impact on the funding available for local support services”.

The LGA also voiced concerns about the impact of such a change on housing standards and community cohesion.

It said asylum seekers might be placed in “overcrowded rooms in overcrowded housing in neighbourhoods with existing high concentrations of asylum seekers, with potential community tension impacts”.

Increased use of substandard accommodation with the removal of standards on the number of kitchens and bathrooms needed could increased pressure on public services such as waste management and health.

The LGA called for engagement by Whitehall, local government and other stakeholders to make the proposed inspection regime work effectively and monitor the changes from the outset.

There also needed to be agreement on what standards Home Office inspectors would require and a process for councils to raise cases of accommodation below current HMO standards as part of a jointly agreed safeguarding framework.

“If councils are not engaged in the decision, as has happened in previous hotel procurement, then it should be clarified that the Home Office will take responsibility for safeguarding and supporting wellbeing,” the LGA said.

The LGA also questioned the Hole Office’s reasoning in seeking the change.

It said it understood the Home Office saw the HMO regime “as creating a barrier to their providers acquiring accommodation quickly [but] it is however unclear how HMO licensing acts to slow down procurement because providers do not necessarily have to wait for an HMO licence to be in place before using properties”. 

When the regulations were debated in the House of Commons earlier this month, communities minister Felicity Buchan said: “Placing asylum seekers in hotels is burdensome on local communities and expensive for the taxpayer. This position is unsustainable, and the Home Office is working tirelessly, alongside other departments, to reduce dependency on hotels through a package of short and long-term measures, of which this statutory instrument is one.

“Longer-term dispersal accommodation, such as houses in multiple occupation, commonly known as HMOs, are a better solution for asylum seekers - especially single asylum seekers - communities and the taxpayer.”

Buchan said to support the rapid provision of alternative accommodation to hotels the Government wishes to “temporarily exempt asylum accommodation from the licensing requirements for houses in multiple occupation”.

Dean Underwood and Jack Barber of Cornerstone Barristers, writing last month in Local Government Lawyer, noted: “Politically, they call into question whether it is really necessary or appropriate to sacrifice the objectives of HMO licensing at the altar of expediency, particularly given the vulnerability of those seeking asylum in the UK, who are presently accommodated by the Home Office.”

Mark Smulian