Home Office to blame for Glasgow immigration housing crisis, John Swinney says

The Home Office is to blame for Glasgow’s deepening refugee housing crisis, John Swinney has said.

The first minister, speaking at a campaign event ahead of next year’s election, said concerns raised by Glasgow City Council were “legitimate” and he called for better engagement from the Home Office.

The council has been calling for support from the UK Government in recent months after forecasts put the cost of housing refugees at £66m next year.

Nearly half (44 per cent) of homeless people in Glasgow come from refugee households, while over half of temporary accommodation is taken up by refugee families.

The city has become attractive to many refugees because of Scotland’s more generous laws on homelessness.

Councils here have a duty to house everyone who is homeless, including refugees who have received leave to remain. In England, councils only have a duty to house those in “priority need”.

Asked whether the Scottish Government would step in to support the council, Swinney said: “This is a Home Office issue. The problem that Glasgow is wrestling with is a product of the decision by the Home Office.

“I’ve made it clear that I very much support the steps taken by Glasgow City Council to get better engagement from the Home Office on this question, and I think they’ve got legitimate concerns that have got to be addressed.”

The council has previously warned that the problem risks “damaging social cohesion” in the city because it is putting pressure on the wider housing system.

Swinney’s comments also come after weeks of protests outside of hotels used to house asylum seekers.

The first minister labelled these protests “appalling” and said some of the banners on display at them were “wholly contemptible and hostile”.

And he also insisted he would not back down on his pro-immigration stance despite mounting pressures and rising support for Reform UK.

He claimed his view was what the “majority of people in Scotland” believed.

He said: “It’s important that very clear and emphatic political leadership is given, that Scotland will not follow that hostile approach to migration. Indeed, we actually need more people to come to Scotland to boost our working age population because of some of the challenges we face.

“That’s where I stand. I’m not going to change my mind. I think it’s an important stance of principle that reflects the people I lead in this country.”