Local authorities could soon be piloting plans to hand over their responsibility for existing asylum seekers to the Home Office.
The National Asylum Support Service, set up to handle the dispersal of new asylum seekers, says it is keen to take on the 65,000 asylum seekers currently supported by local authorities.

But NASS director Bob Eagle told Housing Today there were issues about whether it was reasonable to expect asylum seekers who had been living in London to be dispersed around the country.

"Our policy line at the moment is it is reasonable, unless there are children where it is exam critical or there are medical reasons ," he said. "People move so there is no reason why asylum seekers shouldn't move."

NASS is due to talk to the Local Government Association next week about the way forward. Eagle suggested pilots might be one option.

"If it's doable, we could do it a bit at a time," he said.

He added that where asylum seekers had a genuine reason for needing to stay in London or the south east, NASS might look to pay the authority to continue to support them where they were living.

The phased roll-out of NASS's support for all new asylum seekers is due to be completed next month.

And the latest deals with local authority consortia to provide accommodation - in Yorkshire and Humberside, the East Midlands and Cardiff - are also likely to be finalised within the next few weeks.

Eagle said NASS had encountered teething problems since it went live in April. But he stressed: "We have now got local authorities on board around the country. It has been quite fascinating to see the turn around."