Lagan Valley DUP MLA Emma Little-Pengelly has called on the Home Office to urgently release hundreds of unoccupied homes it is holding across Northern Ireland, warning that the situation is exacerbating the region's housing crisis.

Little-Pengelly said the properties, spread across seven constituencies, are being secured by housing provider Mears on behalf of the Home Office, primarily for the accommodation of asylum seekers. She raised concerns about the number of homes and bed spaces remaining unused at a time of acute pressure on the housing market.

She said: "Mears Housing secures properties on behalf of the Home Office in Northern Ireland, mainly to house asylum seekers. It has got rich in doing so. Exceeding the permitted profits margins.

"The Home Office, through Mears currently has hundreds of homes on its books which are sitting empty.

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"At a time when so many can't get affordable private rental, families are homeless, where many others can't find a property to enable them even to move out of their parents' house or are currently in unsuitable housing this is entirely unacceptable and must be addressed urgently.

"I was shocked to learn that the Home Office is holding in excess of 1000 empty bed spaces across Northern Ireland.

"I asked to urgently meet with Mears to discuss this issue and while some discussions have been had about releasing these homes, this needs to happen urgently."

The DUP MLA said the issue reflects broader concerns around accountability and transparency in how the Home Office operates in Northern Ireland and how its contractors manage housing stock.

"The Home Office, and the company it has procured to secure properties in NI, Mears must be more accountable to the people of Northern Ireland. The lack of transparency on Home Office operations in NI is not acceptable.

"I was shocked to hear of the scale of this issue, especially at a time of housing shortage and lack of rental availability across Northern Ireland.

"The practices of the Home Office and Mears must be made publicly available.

"This is a challenging time for many, and in particular as we approach Christmas I am appalled that so many remain without suitable housing while many hundreds of properties are being paid for by the central UK Government to remain empty and unavailable to people and families across Northern Ireland."

Little-Pengelly urged the Home Office and Mears to act swiftly to make the empty properties available, saying the situation must be resolved as a matter of urgency.