Council leader's request for no more asylum seekers in city while Birmingham is on national watchlist

And he added that there are ‘concerns’ about the conditions asylum seekers are being kept in within Birmingham, stating that they ‘are the victims of this pandemic in the same way as everyone else’.

Last month, it was reported that more than 200 asylum seekers were placed into a city centre hotel back in May by the Government, despite no prior consultation with local authorities.

This was despite the fact that leader of Birmingham City Council, Councillor Ian Ward wrote a strongly worded letter opposing the plans, only to seemingly be ignored by the Home Office.

Speaking at a Covid Engagement Board meeting on Thursday, Councillor Ward confirmed that the council had written to the Government asking that no more asylum seekers be placed into Birmingham while the city remained on a national watchlist.

And he confirmed on Friday that he has also raised the issue of asylum seeker dispersal with the Home Secretary, adding that the council may have to take ‘further steps’ if they do not receive a positive response.

'Disappointing'

He said: “It is very disappointing that the previous letters that were written to the government about the placing of asylum seekers, not just in Birmingham but in other West Midlands Metropolitan areas, have not been responded to positively.

“Last week when we met with Matt Hancock we made a request that no further asylum seekers be placed into the city whilst we are in the current position that we are in, and that was received positively.

"And I have written today to the Home Secretary Priti Patel reinforcing that request, but also flagging up to her the very fact that Birmingham has received more than its fair share of asylum seekers that are being placed nationally, and we are looking for more fairness to be brought into the system.

“We are not also not very happy with Serco [the company responsible for housing asylum seekers in some locations] and the way that they are performing at locations in Birmingham. This was the subject of a discussion with the Met leaders yesterday morning, and the letter that’s been sent off this morning has been signed not only by myself but also by Preet Gill, who is the local MP for Edgbaston.

“I have to say if we don’t receive a positive response from government on these matters we might have to take further steps to restrict further asylum seekers being placed into the West Midlands.”

Despite this recent request Councillor Ward was also keen to point out that Birmingham remained a City of Sanctuary for asylum seekers, a status the city has had for a number of years.

Victims

And he urged those who may be uncomfortable with the rise in asylum seekers in the city that these refugees are victims too, adding that he was concerned about the conditions that some were staying in.

“I think my message to people in Birmingham would be to recognise that asylum seekers are the victims of this pandemic in the same way as everyone else,” he said.

“Birmingham is a City of Sanctuary, we have stood up and done our fair share of accommodating asylum seekers for a number of years up to now.

“Our concerns really moving forward are about the way the government are going around allocating asylum seekers both at the moment and the way they intend to do it in the future, and we are very concerned about the conditions that some of these asylum seekers are currently being kept in.

“We would expect people to be treated as human beings and we are very concerned about some of the conditions that asylum seekers are having to live in in the locations they have been assigned to in the city of Birmingham, and as I said earlier, we expect a very positive response from the Home Secretary on this matter.”