Army barracks will become UK’s first migrant camp after surge in Channel crossings
AN army barracks is set to become the UK's first migrant camp after a surge in people crossing the Channel.
Around 400 asylum seekers will be moved to disused Napier Barracks in Folkestone, Kent, from next week - as the Home Office searches for other MoD sites across the country.
The move has angered local officials, who say that they "cannot support" the decision.
However, the Government has said the measures are designed to save the taxpayer millions on contingency accommodation, with army barracks coming in cheaper than hotel bills.
In a joint letter to Home Secretary Priti Patel, Conservative MP Damian Collins along with the leader of Folkestone and Hythe District Council and the chairman of Sandgate Parish Council demanded that the decision be reversed.
They said: "We have great concerns about the impact this large open camp will have on the welfare of the local residential community and also those people in the asylum system who will be placed at the barracks itself."
Meanwhile, Folkestone and Hythe District Council said there had been a "lack of consultation on this matter and the exceptionally poor communication with us".
They added: "We are quite sure that members of the community will have many questions, and we are seeking clarification as a matter of urgency."
Among those seeking asylum include a dad who was today pictured carrying his baby below the White Cliffs of Dover.
The Home Secretary today said she would consider centres in Calais or in Belgium and other places refugees come through where they could have their asylum claims processed before risking their lives on the journey.
Priti Patel told LBC: "Yes we are. We are looking at all options and these are issues that we are discussing with my counterpart in France."
It came as it was revealed that migrants who make it across the Channel in small boats will be housed in military barracks while their claims are processed.
Around 400 people including families are to be housed in temporary accommodation at Napier Barracks in Folkestone, Kent, from next week.
Penally Training Camp in Pembrokeshire, West Wales, is also being considered for use.
The Home Office said the MoD offered use of the sites in response to a Government plea to secure further accommodation for migrants.
It said the barracks were “value for money” and gave “destitute” asylum seekers a “suitable” place to live.
But local MP Damian Collins has lashed out at the plans, saying the Home Office must find more "suitable" accommodation.
He said their “concentration” on sites with limited facilities was “not healthy”.
Mr Collins added: “I can understand why the Home Office don’t want to use hotels, but the question is over the number of people in a single location.”
Allies of Home Secretary Priti Patel hit back: “If it’s good enough for Our Boys what’s he complaining about?”
Some 168 people crossed to the UK in small boats on Monday alone.
More than 6,000 migrants have made the desperate journey across the Channel this year.
In a statement, Folkestone and Hythe District Council blasted the plans and said they'd not been spoken to about them.
They cited a "lack of consultation on this matter and the exceptionally poor communication with us" and said they were seeking clarification "as a matter of urgency".
Ms Patel also said the UK was already returning people "on a weekly basis" who came to the UK through EU countries where they could have claimed asylum as part of plans to make the Channel route "unviable".
Some had even already started asylum claims in other European countries before trying to get to the UK.
She said: "(We will stop refugees) coming to the UK, when they could have claimed asylum in France, in Germany, in Spain or Italy.
"As a result I am sending people, I’m returning people back on weekly basis now, rightly so, people that have come to our country illegally through small boats and we will continue to do that."
The Home Secretary said despite the more hardline approach of sending people back, migrants were still trying to get to the UK and they were looking at even tougher rules to stop them.
She said: "This is not good enough and I’ve also said this as well, we are looking at fundamental changes that we may need to bring forward legislation to change some of the pull factors that we have here in the United Kingdom."
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A UK Government spokesperson said: "A UK Government spokesperson said: "During these unprecedented times, the Government is working with a range of partners and across departments to secure further accommodation and the MoD has offered use of some of its sites.
"When using contingency accommodation we work closely with organisations, including local authorities and law enforcement, throughout the process to ensure value for money and that vulnerable asylum seekers, who would otherwise be destitute, have suitable accommodation while their claims are processed."