Harben House hotel: Convicted criminal wins funding to house migrants

A landlord jailed for forging documents related to amerciable properties is to location migrants with authorities funding.

Harben House edifice successful Newport Pagnell is owed to person 270 asylum seekers, to beryllium accommodated successful astir 150 rooms.

The hotel's owner, Siddharth Mahajan, 42, from Ilford successful eastbound London, was convicted of offences linked to the cognition of houses of aggregate occupancy (HMOs).

Mahajan has not responded to a petition for comment.

Milton Keynes Council person Pete Marland, Labour, described the BBC's findings arsenic "shocking".

He said: "The Home Office are meant to beryllium liable for instrumentality and order, not paying convicted felons hundreds of thousands of pounds.

"It truly does item a continued level of incompetence. I telephone connected the Home Office to retreat backing for the edifice and reappraisal wherefore this was allowed to happen."

Barking and Dagenham council said it investigated Mahajan for converting 3 household homes successful Barking, eastbound London, into HMOs without readying permission.

He falsely claimed they had been successful usage arsenic HMOs for much than 10 years and were truthful immune from enforcement action, but the documents helium supplied arsenic grounds were forgeries.

Mahajan was sentenced to 16 months successful situation successful aboriginal 2019 aft being recovered blameworthy of perverting the people of justness and utilizing copies of forged documents.

In correspondence seen by the BBC, the Home Office told Milton Keynes Council successful June it had identified Harben House "as a tract to accommodate asylum seekers".

The spot is owned by Bluebell Tame Ltd, of which Mahajan became manager connected 21 July.

That institution has since been taken implicit by his Tulip Real Estates concern and the edifice was described connected the company's website arsenic "one of the astir perfect hotels successful Milton Keynes".

The BBC understands it volition beryllium utilized arsenic longer-term impermanent accommodation for radical awaiting decisions connected their asylum claims.

The Home Office said: "We person been wide that the usage of hotels to location asylum seekers is unacceptable.

"There are presently much than 51,000 asylum seekers successful hotels costing the UK payer £6m a day.

"We prosecute with section authorities arsenic aboriginal arsenic imaginable whenever sites are utilized for asylum accommodation and enactment to guarantee arrangements are harmless for edifice residents and section people."

A by-election is owed to instrumentality spot successful the Newport Pagnell South ward of Milton Keynes City Council connected 21 September.

Jane Carr, lawman person of the Liberal Democrats connected the council, said: "Local residents merit better, they request openness and transparency from the Home Office and we request our MP to supply re-assurances that those moving contracts are liable for their concern practices and are acceptable for purpose."

Conservative MP for Milton Keynes North, Ben Everitt, has been contacted for comment.