Home Office DELAYS housing asylum seekers at Crowborough barracks after weeks of protesting

It is understood the Home Office will not make decisions on the site until the new year.

Ms Ghani said: "Through our consistent and persistent campaigning against the Home Office, we have finally secured a confirmation of a delay to moving asylum seekers to Crowborough.

"The Home Office confirmed that no decisions will take place until the new year.

"We have been forensic and technical in our questioning of the Home Office’s presumption that the site would be safe, legal and compliant, and this has no doubt slowed down their plan.

"I am grateful to everyone who signed my petition, which has over 9,500 signatures, and to Crowborough Shield for raising legal action against the Home Office."

In response to the plans being pushed back, a Home Office spokeswoman said: "We are furious at the level of illegal migrants and asylum hotels.

“This government will close every asylum hotel. Work is well underway, with more suitable sites being brought forward to ease pressure on communities and cut asylum costs.

“We are working closely with local authorities, property partners and across-government so that we can accelerate delivery.”

The Government announced plans in October to temporarily house 900 migrants across Crowborough Training Camp and Cameron Barracks in Inverness, Scotland, in an alternative to using costly hotels.

The plans for Cameron Barracks were however, also delayed in November following backlash from Highland Council and some local residents.

Downing Street earlier suggested that moving asylum seekers into military barracks will be worth it even if it costs more than using hotels because it will help quell public discontent.

A No10 spokesman said in October: “I think there’s a number of issues in play.

“The costs will vary site by site, and as I say, we are looking at these initial two sites and if they will prove the concept, and if successful, we’ll look at scaling that up.

“But this is also a core issue of public confidence. The public is very clear it does not want asylum seekers housed in hotels, and neither does the Government.”

The proposals however, sparked weeks of protests in Crowborough supported by campaign group Crowborough Shield, with hundreds taking to the streets in opposition to the plans.

Speaking at one of the demonstrations, campaigner Sarah White told the crowd she had stopped paying council tax and urged others to do the same.

"I am making a stand. I’ve stopped paying my council tax. I would encourage every single person to stop paying their council tax," she said.

“It’s not indefinitely, it’s just you saying, ‘At the moment, you are not putting us as a priority.’”

Both Crowborough and Cameron barracks sites were used to accommodate Afghan families evacuated during the withdrawal from Kabul in 2021, while they were resettled elsewhere, with that work ending earlier this year.

The Government has pledged to end the use of asylum hotels by 2029.

Figures released last month show the number of asylum seekers being housed temporarily in UK hotels has risen by 13 per cent in three months.

There were 36,273 people staying in such accommodation at the end of September, while they were awaiting a decision on their asylum claims.

Expected costs of Home Office accommodation contracts for 2019-2029 have tripled from £4.5billion to £15.3billion, following what the Commons Home Affairs Committee called a “dramatic increase” in demand.

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