What impact do refugees have on housing in Glasgow?

What impact do refugees have on housing in Glasgow?4 hours agoShareSaveAdd as preferred on GooglePhil Sim,Scotland political correspondent,Aimee StantonandAndrew PickenGetty ImagesImmigration is not directly an issue for the Scottish Parliament, but it has become one of the most contentious elements of the election campaign.The MSPs elected on 7 May will not have a say over immigration policy, which is decided at Westminster. But every party has a view on it and a poll for the BBC placed it as one of the most important issues in the minds of voters.BBC Verify is examining claims made by political leaders about the impact of asylum and migration on housing.Scotland, like the rest of the UK, has experienced a boom in immigration in recent years.Official routes such as international student visas account for most of the recent spike in Scotland.But the far smaller number of people arriving via unofficial routes, such as small boats crossing the English Channel, often dominate the political debate about immigration.And there has been particular controversy about Glasgow.Scotland's largest city has a longstanding issue with a lack of housing, and was the first in the country to declare this an emergency in 2023.And a recent factor has been the interplay between Home Office attempts to clear the backlog of people awaiting asylum decisions, and Scotland's approach to homelessness.Why are there so many asylum seekers in Glasgow?Getty ImagesHundreds of protestors surrounded a Home Office immigration enforcement van in the southside of Glasgow in 2021More than 6,500 people are currently in Scotland seeking asylum and receiving Home Office housing support, according to the latest data. This is 6% of the UK total. These people live in a mixture of hotels and social housing while the UK government decides whether to allow them to remain in the country longer-term.More than half of them are in Glasgow, with the city hosting the largest number of asylum seekers among all...