A Bathgate hotel has insisted it is not set to be used to house asylum seekers.
Both the Local Democracy Reporting Service (LDRS) and the West Lothian Courier have been told that Home Office contractors had chosen the Cairn Hotel in Blackburn Road as a venue for asylum seekers awaiting their applications being decided.
The hotel confirmed to the LDRS that the business had been contacted by the Home Office but said no further action had been taken.
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It is the second time in a year that rumours have circulated that the hotel is to house asylum seekers.
A former hotel in Falkirk, The Cladhan, was taken on by Home Office contractors last year to house asylum seekers. The Cladhan, which had been closed during the Covid pandemic, is part of the same group, Hannigan Hotels, which operates the Cairn.
Shona Molloy, FOH Manager of the Cairn Hotel said: “The Cairn Hotel Ltd has indeed again been approached by the Home Office, as it was last time this story ran.
“Given our property in Falkirk houses asylum seekers the Home Office were interested to speak to us, however that is the extent of the conversation at this time.”
She added: “Thank you again for reaching out for clarification on the subject.”
Early last year West Lothian Council was informed that the Cairn was to be used to house asylum seekers.
In May 2022 the LDRS reported the council had been told that up to 81 single men predominantly from the Middle East or Africa would be accommodated at the Cairn Hotel while their asylum applications were processed.
The council had been advised six weeks before that the Cairn would be used as an asylum hotel.
However in late May it emerged that no agreement had been made and the Cairn would not be accepting asylum seekers.
This year, as rumours began circulating in Bathgate at the end of February, the council had heard nothing. Accommodation of asylum seekers is contracted out by the Home Office.
Contacted by the LDRS, a spokesperson for the Home Office said: “The number of people arriving in the UK who require accommodation has reached record levels and has put our asylum system under incredible strain.
“We engage with local authorities as early as possible whenever sites are used for asylum accommodation and work to ensure arrangements are safe for hotel residents and local people.”
By way of background detail the Home Office spokesperson added: “The Home Office does not comment on operational arrangements for individual sites used for asylum accommodation.
“The use of hotels is a temporary solution, and we are working hard with local authorities to find appropriate accommodation.
“We continue to ensure the accommodation provided is safe, secure, leaves no one destitute and is appropriate for an individual’s needs.
“The use of hotels to house asylum seekers is unacceptable – there are currently more than 45,500 asylum seekers in hotels costing the UK taxpayer £5.6 million a day.”
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