People seeking asylum

No council tax funding, or any other kind of Council funding, is used to pay for the accommodation or placement of asylum seekers. It is funded by the UK Government alone.

The Home Office has accommodated 191 asylum seekers in Perth and Kinross in local hotels under its national scheme. It has not informed Perth and Kinross Council that it plans to increase this number. 

Where a request for more accommodation is made, the Home Office and its partner Mears Group plc must ask for the assistance of the local authority to find suitable accommodation, and a full assessment needs to be carried out prior to any accommodation being recommended to the Home Office. No such assessment has been requested or undertaken in relation to any additional hotels or other properties in the area. 

Perth and Kinross Council does not hold information about the asylum seekers accommodated in local hotels commissioned by the UK Government. Freedom of Information requests relating to the accommodation of asylum seekers should be directed to the UK Government. Information about how to make a request is available here.