Executive agrees to give city extra cash

Glasgow Council has won its battle with the Scottish executive and
the government for extra funding to meet the added costs of
supporting asylum seekers.

The council had warned the executive and Home Office it would have
to cut services because of the impact on its finances of providing
education, social work, interpreter and transport services for its
2,000 asylum seekers.

But, after months of talks, the executive and government have
agreed to meet these extra costs, allowing the council to extend
its National Asylum Support Service housing contract for a further
15 months. More talks are planned to take the agreement beyond July
2006.

Under the Nass contract, Glasgow will receive nearly £25m for
accommodating asylum seekers in 200 housing units over the 15
months. This will cover council tax, utilities, interpreters and
project staff.

Glasgow is the only council in Scotland to accept asylum seekers
under the Nass dispersal scheme, and has housed more than 12,000
over the past five years.