ASYLUM seekers should not be prioritised over local people when it comes to social and affordable housing in Somerset, county councillors will be told on Wednesday (May 21).

Somerset Council will debate a motion at its annual meeting, to be held in Bridgwater, calling for ‘urgent assurances’ from the Government that ‘migration accommodation schemes will not come at the expense of housing provision for Somerset residents’.

It follows the Government demanding Somerset should provide homes for more asylum seekers than any other Westcountry county, bar two.

The motion is being put by Conservative Cllr Lucy Trimnell and seconded by new opposition group leader Cllr Diogo Rodriguez.

It also calls on the Liberal Democrat-run unitary council to affirm its commitment to prioritising Somerset residents for social and affordable housing wherever legally and practically possible.

And it requests any future Government-funded schemes affecting the Somerset housing supply should have sufficient additional investment to ‘ensure local need is not displaced’.

The Government may be asked to reduce the number of asylum seekers it wants housed in Somerset.
The Government may be asked to reduce the number of asylum seekers it wants housed in Somerset. ( )

Cllrs Trimnell and Rodrigues said the council should recognise the severe and growing pressures on social housing and the private rental sector in Somerset.

Existing demand was being driven up by major infrastructure projects such as the Hinkley Point C nuclear power station development and the Gravity Enterprise Zone, near Bridgwater, which were attracting a large incoming workforce.

They said: “We also acknowledge that Somerset is playing a role in national resettlement and asylum schemes, with Government targets placing additional housing pressures on the county.

“For example, Somerset has been allocated 826 asylum accommodation bedspaces, the third highest target in the South West, while also planning for arrivals under the Afghan Resettlement Programme.

“While the council is committed to supporting vulnerable displaced people through ring-fenced Government funding, we must also be honest about the strain this places on the wider housing system and public services, which are under considerable pressure.”

Ahead of the meeting, Bridgwater MP Sir Ashley Fox has written to Home Secretary Yvette Cooper also expressing concern about housing pressures in Somerset.

Sir Ashley said: “Large numbers of asylum seekers continue to arrive in the UK.

“Until such time as the numbers reduce, if indeed you are ever successful in your goal, there will be a requirement to resettle those seeking asylum across the country.

“While I appreciate the need for all areas to support vulnerable displaced people through ring-fenced Government funding, I believe the number allocated to Somerset is currently too high and does not take into consideration a number of other pressures on accommodation.

“My constituents are understandably worried that the additional burden of a high number of asylum seekers will tip an already under-pressure housing market into crisis.

“Given this, I am asking you and your Department to reassess the current number of asylum resettlements for Somerset.

“It is critical to ensure local people are not forced out of their homes by rent increases, or waiting too long for social housing, because the Government has failed to understand the pressures we face.”