The number of asylum-seekers in Oxford is expected to drop in the wake of tough new laws introduced to stem the flow of refugees.

Around 1,500 people are living in the city after fleeing from abroad, placing huge pressures on social services.

But now Oxford City Council's housing committee chairman, Cllr David Connett, believes the number of asylum-seekers will not increase, despite yesterday's horrific discovery of the bodies of 58 illegal immigrants in the back of a lorry.

He said: "It's obscene that so many people died in the back of that lorry. If this would have been some sort of drugs-related death the Government would have thrown every resource at tackling the problem but that won't be the case because these people were asylum-seekers. He added: "I believe fining lorry drivers who smuggle asylum-seekers into the country will have a huge effect on the numbers of people coming here and we're not going to see any rise in the figures.

Social services has been forced to turn the former Oseney Court nursing home, in Botley Road, Oxford, into emergency accommodation for asylum-seekers to cut the amount paid to landlords.