Councils' fears grow as asylum amnesty remains behind schedule

On 24 October 2003, David Blunkett promised exceptional leave to remain for 15,000 asylum seekers and their families who arrived in the country before October 2000. He said the process would be complete in six months.

Government targets state that at least 2500 families should have been contacted by now – more than two months since the amnesty was announced.

But the Home Office has only managed to get in touch with about 1450, according to an inside source (see "Behind schedule", above).

This week the government wrote to the chief executives of all affected boroughs to explain what must be done to process and support the families involved. In some cases this may mean councils will have to house homeless candidates, recording how many children eligible families have and bringing any benefits they receive into the mainstream social security system.

The insider, who sits on one of the multi-agency steering groups overseeing the process, said: "This puts an added pressure on maintaining continuity of accommodation and giving good advice. Other departments and local government will be affected.

"There are concerns that the timetable will be more compact because of lateness. The whole idea is that people are able to stay [living] where they are, which will involve renegotiating contracts with providers. We need as much time as possible to make sure that happens smoothly."

Wandsworth council has an estimated 110 families covered by the amnesty.

A spokesman said the council was worried about their impact on resources. He added: "It is increasingly clear that ministers haven't fully considered the implications of these policy changes."

A spokeswoman for Westminster council said: "We still don't know the number of families that will be granted leave. We do anticipate incurring costs and will look to the Home Office to meet these."

A Home Office spokeswoman said the six-month target remained.