Scampton: Asylum seekers could arrive from 14 April

RAF Scampton gatesImage source, PA Media
Image caption,

The Home Office plans to house up to 2,000 asylum seekers on the former RAF base

At a glance

  • 14 April could be earliest arrival of asylum seekers at RAF Scampton site

  • Home Office plans to house up to 2,000 asylum seekers on former base

  • West Lindsey District Council is seeking a second judicial review

  • The council lost a previous judicial review in the High Court

  • Published

Home Office documents suggest that asylum seekers could arrive at RAF Scampton from 14 April onwards, according to the Local Democracy Reporting Service.

Meanwhile plans to house up to 2,000 asylum seekers on the former military base near Lincoln will face a second judicial review.

West Lindsey District Council announced it will again challenge the lawfulness of the decision in the High Court.

It said that the plan will harm the site's historic buildings and have an "unacceptable" impact on local services including health and roads.

The Home Office said using military sites provides "more orderly, suitable accommodation" than hotels.

Last year the council launched a judicial review challenging the government's right to grant itself permission to move on to the site using so-called "emergency powers".

Its case was rejected but the council said it would appeal against the judgement.

The emergency permission will run out in April and the government is seeking the approval of Parliament, in the form of a special development order, for it to continue to use the site for a further three-and-a-half years.

That process will be the subject of the second court hearing, the council said.

It is not yet known if the second challenge will delay the granting of the special development order.

According to the government, the asylum seekers would be mainly young, single men from countries including Iraq, Syria and Afghanistan.

Some of the accommodation at Scampton would include portable cabins parked on the tarmac or runway.

Health facilities have been installed on site and a bus service would take the asylum seekers to nearby Lincoln, the Home Office said.

West Lindsey Council, in a statement, said the plan amounted to "inappropriate intensification of population in an unsustainable rural area".

Council leader Trevor Young, said the government had also "failed to engage properly with local people".

Image caption,

Asylum seekers will be housed in former RAF buildings and portable cabins

A Home Office spokesperson said: “We understand the concerns of local communities and are liaising with councils and local services to manage the impact of using these sites on a temporary basis.

“We remain committed to working with key partners to facilitate their visions for Scampton in the future.”

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