Planned site for asylum seekers has asbestos - MP

Asbestos has been found in the heating system and the ground

Asbestos has been identified at a former prison in East Sussex that is proposed to temporarily house asylum seekers, an MP has confirmed.

Northeye, an ex-military base on the outskirts of Bexhill-on-Sea, could become accommodation for up to 1,200 asylum seekers.

Bexhill and Battle Conservative MP Huw Merriman said tests were under way to determine the level of contamination.

The Home Office said the site will be refurbished and brought up to the required standard.

On his website, Mr Merriman said that asbestos was found in two boreholes which were drilled on site.

He also said the substance was found in the heating system and that traces of asbestos from the roofs were found in the ground following a fire there in 1986.

A toxicology report to establish the "level and volume" of contamination is currently being undertaken.

Mr Merriman said: "Once this is completed, and all is considered safe to continue, the purchase of the site will go through and the centre will be set-up."

Huw Merriman said a toxicology report to establish the level and volume of contamination is under way

Mr Merriman said the Home Office provided reassurance that contamination "is not as significant as many people fear and that this is a purely precautionary approach".

The first 400 asylum seekers are anticipated to arrive in September.

A Home Office spokesperson said: "Any accommodation used in response to the increasing pressures on the UK asylum system will be fit for purpose and meet all relevant housing and health and safety rules."

"The current site will be refurbished and brought up to the required standard," they added.