The Home Office has refused to commit to signing up to a key agreement governing London boroughs’ procurement of temporary accommodation, The MJ can reveal.
Since 2011 London leaders have followed the inter-borough temporary accommodation agreement (IBTAA), which includes a commitment for councils not to outbid each other by paying a higher rent than the host borough would pay.
The agreement aims to reduce competition between boroughs, strengthen their position when dealing with temporary accommodation providers and keep costs down.
However, the Home Office, which has so far dragged its feet in signing up to the London agreement, is increasingly procuring more temporary accommodation in the capital in response to an increase in asylum seekers.
It is understood that a lot of the accommodation recently procured by the Home Office has been concentrated in east London, leading to frustration with how the department is operating in the capital.
Councils have been lobbying the Home Office to sign up to the IBTAA and pay fairly for placements to ensure London boroughs are not priced out of being able to provide temporary accommodation.
Former Home Office and local government minister Phil Woolas said: ‘It seems that this is the Home Office coming in with size 12 boots but it’s actually in its interest to pick up the phone to London councils.’
When asked directly if the Home Office would sign up to the agreement, a spokesperson declined to comment.
The Home Office spokesperson said it was trying to increase the amount of longer-term temporary accommodation to meet the growing demand and it was ‘committed’ to working with local authorities ‘in a spirit of transparency’.
Home Secretary Priti Patel has acknowledged severe shortages of local authority accommodation, adding the Government will need to pay more to councils so that people can be placed in rented or social housing.
