TLK Apartments in St Mary Cray, Bromley's only asylum hotel, has reopened to the public after three years of housing asylum seekers, the Home Office announced on Thursday.
Closure of 20 asylum hotels across England
The hotel's reopening is part of a government initiative to remove incentives for illegal immigration. The Home Office confirmed the closure of 20 asylum hotels across England, including two in Greater London: TLK Apartments and Best Western Wembley. The Bell Hotel in Epping also returned to public use.
All 20 hotels housed asylum seekers, most of whom entered the UK illegally. Eleven other asylum hotels reopened in April, saving taxpayers £170 million this financial year, according to the Home Office.
Significant reduction in asylum hotel numbers
The Home Office reported that the number of asylum hotels in use has more than halved to just under 170, while the number of asylum seekers in hotels has dropped from a peak of 56,000 to 21,000. Minister for Border Security and Asylum, Alex Norris, said: "We promised to close every asylum hotel and hand them back to communities. That is exactly what we are doing here in Greater London."
Norris added: "Twenty more hotels are now closed across England, hotel numbers have more than halved since their peak, and we are moving people into large, basic sites that are a far cry from the hotels the last Government left us with. This is a system being brought back under control – and we will not stop until the job is done."
Bromley Council's position and local concerns
Bromley Council confirmed that no asylum seekers from TLK Apartments are being rehoused via the council's housing register. A council spokesperson said: "Bromley Council welcomes the Government's cessation of the use of TLK Apartments in St Mary Cray to house asylum seekers. This was the only 'asylum hotel' in the borough and went ahead despite the council's objections. We are pleased that TLK Apartments will now revert to normal use and would like to reassure residents that none of the asylum seekers who were resident there are being rehoused via the council's housing register."
Previously, in August, Bromley Council issued a statement clarifying that TLK Apartments housed "children, women and families only in temporary accommodation," contrary to local rumors about "single young men." The council also noted no police investigations were linked to the hotel. Racist graffiti had appeared in St Mary Cray believed to be connected to the asylum seekers' presence.
