Hotels for asylum seekers are costing up to £8million a day

Taxpayers are stumping up £8million a day to keep Channel migrants in hotels, official figures revealed this week.

Home Secretary Suella Braverman cited a figure on Monday of £6million – a sum not updated since January despite there being nearly 24,000 clandestine crossings since then.

But the Home Office's annual report highlighted the 'unacceptable costs of housing migrants in hotels which is costing the taxpayer around £8million a day'. Total expenditure on the asylum system is more than £3billion a year, it added.

The report also revealed a surge in the number caught trying to enter Britain irregularly by air. It said 4,569 'inadequately documented' passengers were identified at UK airports last year – such as foreign nationals who require a visa to enter Britain. It was up from 2,561 in the previous 12 months.

The document said the surge could represent a 'change in route by those seeking to evade controls'. A government source said of the £8million-a-day hotel costs: 'This is why we've got to get migrants out of hotels and stop the boats.'

It was also revealed earlier this month that the Home Office had 215,518 asylum cases 'in progress' at the end of June, up 30 per cent year on year. It included more than 41,000 failed asylum seekers awaiting removal.

The 300-page Home Office report also showed the department paid out £16.1million in compensation for wrongful detention during the year 2022-23. It was up from £12.7million the previous year.

Nine top Home Office civil servants received bonuses on top of their salaries during the year.

Up to £110,000 was paid out in bonuses in total. This included between £15,000 and £20,000 for Emma Churchill, director general of migration and borders.