Campaigners say Glasgow the ‘frontline’ of fight against UK immigration policy

● Home providers plan to flip leases to allow people to stay

Housing providers in Glasgow have signal led their intention to convert the leases on their properties to allow eviction-threatened refugees to remain.

The Wheatley Group, which operates the Glasgow Housing Association( G HA) and Cube Housing Association, said it planned to “flip” agreements on more than 70 properties currently leased to private firm Serco.

Serco has come under heavy criticism over plans to begin evicting asylum seekers who no longer have leave to remain in the UK by changing the lock son their accommodation.

Yesterday homelessness charity Shelter Scotland went to Glasgow Sheriff Court to block the move.

In a letter sent to Scotland’s Tenants’ Union yesterday, the Wheatley Group said it had written to Serco’s chief executive, Rupert Soames, to inform him of its plans.

It said: “We have written to inform him we wish to convert the leases of refugees living in our homes, who have a legal right to be in Scotland and the UK, into Scottish secure tenancies.

“As you know, this ‘flipping’ of the lease agreement would remove the threat of eviction and is something we have carried out successfully previously.”

At the weekend, S erco said it would “pause” its issuing of lock-change orders.

Yesterday, Mr S oames said he did not know how many people housed by the firm in Glasgow would be evicted, but said it was not true that lock change notices would be issued to 330 people.

Speaking on BBC Radio Scotland’s Good Morning Scotland programme, he said: “That is the total number of people we are paying for whom Home Office support has ceased.

“About of third of them have had positive decisions and will be waiting for a month or six weeks or eight weeks to find alternative arrangements and go on and make their lives with legal right to remain, and nobody is going to want to make them homeless.”

Questioned on the figures regarding who would be given lock change notices, he said: “We don’t know, because a number of them, hopefully, will move on.”

His comments came as Justice Secretary Humza Yousaf described the Home Office’s immigration policy as “cruel”.

He said: “The Home Office immigration and asylum policy has rightly been criticised for being too cruel, for not seeing human beings, for not understanding the rea - sons why people leave their homes, whether it is war, poverty or conflict.

“There are some real big hurdles in the asylum process, but there is a complete and utter lack of humanity in the system from the UK government, and that has to change.”

Speaking after yesterday’ s case at the sheriff court was continued, Shelter S cotland’s principal solicitor Fion aMcp hail said the charity would be back in court in 21 days.

Robina Qureshi, director of Positive Action in Housing, said Glasgow was now the “frontline” of the fight against the “hostile environment,” of the controversial Home Office policy.

She said: “Whatever the legal outcome, Scotland has to ask itself whether it is mo rally right for a civilised country to create a humanitarian crisis on our streets, where women, children, the elderly and sick are left destitute.”

“The Home Office immigration and asylum policy has rightly been criticised for being too cruel”

HUMZA YOUSAF