§ Mr. LidingtonTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what the total cost has been in 2000–01 of accommodation paid for by the National Asylum Support Service during the periods when such accommodation was(a) occupied and (b) unoccupied; and if he will make a statement. [148826]
§ Mrs. RocheIn the period 1 April to 31 December the total cost of accommodation paid for by the National Asylum Support Service was £26.7 million. Of this, £19.9 million related to payments for properties that were occupied by asylum seekers.
The remaining £6.8 million related to accommodation pre-booked by the National Asylum support Service. This is a necessary operational requirement to ensure that sufficient accommodation units are available to meet demand.
§ Mr. LidingtonTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what research his Department has conducted into housing asylum seekers in reception 439W centres; what the conclusions were of that research; if he will place the conclusions of the research in the Library; and if he will make a statement. [148823]
§ Mrs. RocheThe potential role of reception centres was considered by officials as part of the comprehensive spending review completed in 1998, but there has been no research on this subject.