Summary
Two companies that house asylum seekers with taxpayer money in the UK, Clearsprings and Mears, plan to return some profits to the Home Office, as required under their agreements. This follows a report showing significant profits since 2019, and a committee appearance where the companies discussed their financial returns.
Key Facts
- Two companies, Clearsprings and Mears, will return some of their profits from government contracts to the Home Office.
- These companies house asylum seekers in hotels using taxpayer money.
- Contracts signed in 2019 require profit returns above 5%.
- A report showed these companies made a combined profit of £383 million since 2019.
- Serco, another company involved, said it did not make enough profit to return funds.
- Most asylum seekers were initially housed in community settings, but many are now in more expensive hotel accommodations.
- No specific date is given for when the Home Office will complete its audit process.
- Both Labour and Conservative parties have committed to ending the use of hotels for asylum seeker housing.
