North of England leaders urge fair distribution of Afghan refugees

Poorest areas house high proportion of asylum seekers, analysis shows, but north pledges to be welcoming

Political leaders in the north of England have promised to welcome refugees from Afghanistan but said they must be distributed fairly across the country, as analysis showed the areas housing the most asylum seekers are among the poorest in Britain.

A Guardian analysis has found that almost one in four of the UK's 44,825 asylum seekers supported by the Home Office are housed in just 10 local authorities, nine of which are among the most deprived in the UK.