Legal action over refugees dropped by council

An ariel view of RAF Wethersfield in Essex which has been used to house asylum seekers since summer 2023

A council has dropped its legal fight against the Home Office's use of a former RAF site to house people seeking asylum.

Refugees have been living at Wethersfield airfield in Essex since July 2023 and Braintree District Council said it does not agree with the Home Office's decision.

But the council withdrew from the Judicial Review appeal after the Home Office laid a Special Development Order (SDO) in parliament.

The order means the government has planning permission for the site to be used for asylum accommodation for the next three years with up to six months of decommissioning.

Following the SDO, a council spokesperson said the public body had to look at the costs incurred from legal action and how it added to the council budget pressures and resources.