AT least a hundred North-East council homes are standing empty after the predicted flood of asylum seekers failed to materialise.

Councils across the region who were obliged to sign agreements with the Home Office to provide refugee accommodation are now furious that the homes are not being put to use.

Wear Valley District Council is planning to bill the Government for the thousands of pounds it has cost to keep the houses in repair and available to asylum seekers.

The leader of Derwentside District Council has also warned that if asylum seekers do not arrive soon, it will put its homes back on the general waiting list.

A consortium of district councils in County Durham signed contacts with the National Asylum Support Service, a Home Office department, as far back as September last year.

Under the terms of the contract, they agreed to find a set amount of properties for their allocation of refugees. But no one has yet arrived.

The director of housing at Wear Valley, Michael Laing, said the bill involved in carrying out their obligation amounted to thousands of pounds. He said: "It doesn't look like we're getting any asylum seekers in Wear Valley, and we're going to send the Government a bill, because on their advice we've held a number of properties empty.

"The ratepayers have to foot the bill, and I'm determined to get the money back."

A similar situation exists in Sedgefield borough, where a number of empty properties set aside for asylum seekers.

The leader of Derwentside District Council, Coun Alex Watson, said the idea of the contract was to organise proper accommodation for refugees, which would be dispersed evenly throughout districts.

In Derwentside, they were told to expect the first of about 90 families three months ago. Mr Watson said: "We all accepted our responsibilities that we should take our share. We were told that our first refugees would be coming in early January, but they never materialised."

A spokesman for the Home Office said councils had to be prepared for asylum seekers and this could result in some empty houses.

He said: "The idea is if people are there, then you have to find them housing immediately.

"But the National Asylum Support Service is a demand-led service. There are people who will need accommodation, but unfortunately sometimes there may be empty properties.