Councils are compulsorily purchasing empty properties to meet a surge in the number of asylum seekers being granted leave to remain in the UK.
Council chiefs have complained they are not being given enough time to find alternative accommodation for successful asylum seekers because of the Home Office’s faster decision-making to clear huge backlogs of cases.
The policy has been highlighted by the plight of an elderly couple who were told they had to give up their home to asylum seekers because of a shortage of suitable accommodation.
