Migrant hotel costs rise to £8m a day, Home Office figures show

The cost of housing migrants in hotels has risen to £8m a day, according to new figures from the Home Office.

The use of hotels has increased over the last few years as the number of people entering the UK illegally or claiming asylum has hit record levels.

The Home Office's Annual Accounts, published on Tuesday, promised to "take action to address the unacceptable costs of housing migrants in hotels which is costing the taxpayer around £8m a day".

The government has a legal obligation to provide asylum seekers - who are not allowed to work while their claim is being processed - with a basic level of accommodation.

Asylum seekers would typically only be housed in hotels or hostels for a few weeks, before being moved to long-term self-catered homes.

However the increase in people claiming asylum -and the backlog of unprocessed claims - has led to a growth in the use of hotels to provide temporary accommodation.