In a move to curb the use of expensive hotels for housing asylum seekers, the UK government has confirmed that the first group of 27 men seeking asylum have been relocated to the former Crowborough military training camp in East Sussex. This is just the start of a larger plan to eventually accommodate over 500 migrants at the site.
The Home Office stated that the Crowborough relocation is part of the government’s “mission to end the use of expensive hotels” for asylum accommodation. Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood said, “Crowborough is just the start” of the government’s efforts to move away from hotel-based housing and return these facilities to local communities.
The plan to use the Crowborough site has faced frequent protests from the local community. Wealden District Council leader James Partridge criticised the decision, though he added, “We do need to make the best of it.” The council’s deputy leader, Racheal Millward, said the Home Office had not properly engaged with the community or detailed the plans, leading to “alarm, fear and possibility of misinformation.”
Conservative Shadow Home Secretary Chris Philp accused the Home Office of “kicking out” army and RAF cadets who previously used the Crowborough site for training. The Home Office, however, stated that “robust safety and public-protection safeguards” are in place, including specialist on-site security and 24/7 CCTV monitoring.
The government claims that moving to larger sites like Crowborough is an important part of its “reforms to tackle illegal migration and the pull factors that make the UK an attractive destination.” Mahmood vowed to “bring forward site after site until every asylum hotel is closed and returned to local communities.”
According to the Home Office, over 400 hotels were opened under the previous government at a cost of £9 million per day. This figure has now been reduced to just under 200 hotels, with overall asylum costs down by 15%.
Despite the government’s assertions, local MP Nusrat Ghani said the Home Office had failed to provide evidence that the Crowborough camp is “safe, legal and compliant.” She claimed the site had previously been rejected for use, though it was earlier used to accommodate Afghan families evacuated during the withdrawal from Kabul in 2021.
As the government continues its push to move away from hotel-based asylum accommodation, the Crowborough relocation has sparked a mixed reaction from the local community, with concerns over safety and the potential impact on public services. The government, however, remains adamant in its mission to find more cost-effective and community-oriented solutions for housing asylum seekers.
