§ Mr. BattleTo ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will place in the Library a copy of the guidance to local authorities concerning the housing provisions of the Asylum and Immigration Appeals Act 1993, issued as a supplement to the current edition of the homelessness code of guidance for local authorities.
§ Sir George YoungI have placed in the Library of the House today a copy of the supplement to the homelessness code of guidance to local authorities which has been issued by my right hon. Friends the Secretaries of State for the Environment and for Wales under section 71 of the Housing Act 1985. The supplement explains local authorities' responsibilities towards asylum seekers who apply to them for assistance under the homelessness legislation, in the light of the Asylum and Immigration Appeals Act 1993. The supplement also clarifies the duties of local authorities which receive applications under the homelessness legislation from persons who have entered the United Kingdom illegally, following the Court of Appeal's judgment in the case of R v. Secretary of State for the Environment ex parte the London Borough of Tower Hamlets. Copies of the supplement are being sent to all local housing authorities in England and Wales and to the main organisations which responded to last year's consultation about a draft of this supplement.