Barracks asylum plan presents complex challenges, says council

The Home Office plans to use military sites as part of UK government efforts to close asylum hotels

Highland Council says plans to house asylum seekers at an Inverness barracks presents the local authority with "new and complex challenges".

Cameron Barracks is to be used to provide temporary accommodation for about 300 men as part of UK government efforts to close asylum hotels.

The 140-year-old army recruitment base, near Inverness city centre, has previously been used to house Afghan families.

But ahead of a special meeting on Thursday, Highland Council said the Home Office proposals were "unlike any previous resettlement experienced here".

Last week, Minister of State at the Home Office Alex Norris was challenged at Westminster on the suitability of the barracks.

Norris said any impact on communities would be "minimised" and the security of people living in surrounding areas was "paramount".

He insisted last week his officials had engaged with the Scottish government and local service providers.

'Key questions'

Cameron Barracks is a 140-year-old army recruitment and training base

In the report to Thursday's special meeting of the full council, Highland Council officials have recommended the local authority writes to the Home Office to seek "urgent clarity" on the proposals.

The officers said: "At the point of writing, there remains a lack of detail as regards what the Home Office proposals will mean, with key questions outstanding in relation to the specifics around implementation, community safeguarding and impact on local services.

"Whilst Highland has always been, and will continue to be, a welcoming place for those seeking a safe place to live, the Home Office proposals are unlike any previous resettlement schemes experienced here and present new and complex challenges."

Council officers said that from the second week of December about 60 people per week could start arriving at the barracks to be housed.

They said the plan was to use the site for 12 months and then it would revert to use as an army training base.

Concerns mentioned in the report include the scale of the proposal, pressures on local services and the potential of protests and the barracks becoming a target for people "deliberately wishing to incite violence and hatred".

According to the report, the Home Office said activities and services, such as education and religious observance, would be provided at the barracks.

But officials added that asylum seekers would have freedom of movement and access to the city centre was through a residential area.

Crowborough army training camp in East Sussex is also to be used for temporarily housing asylum seekers.

Social Justice Secretary Shirley-Anne Somerville said there were "unanswered questions" over the plans

Social Justice Secretary Shirley-Anne Somerville called for "urgent clarification" on what impacts housing asylum seekers in Inverness will have on health, policing and other local services.

Somerville said she had sought a number of reassurances from the UK government after meeting with UK Asylum Minister Alex Norris.

She said: "The Home Office must provide urgent clarity to stop the spread of disinformation amongst communities in Inverness.

"Scotland welcomes refugees and people seeking asylum but it is vital that the Home Office provides clear communication and reassurances on the impact on local services."

A Home Office spokesperson said: "We are furious at the level of illegal migrants and asylum hotels.

"This government will close every asylum hotel. Work is well underway to move illegal migrants into military bases to ease pressure on communities across the country."

The spokesperson added: "We are working closely with local authorities, property partners and across-government so that we can accelerate delivery."

What is an asylum seeker?

An asylum seeker is someone asking for sanctuary due to dangers in their home country

In the UK, all applications for asylum are processed by the Home Office.

Asylum seekers do not have the same rights as a refugee or a British citizen while they wait for a decision. For example, asylum seekers are not allowed to work.

Successful applicants are given refugee status, but the applicant usually has to leave the country if their claim is rejected and any appeal is unsuccessful.

How many asylum seekers are there in the Highlands?

Highland Council says its region has a strong track record in supporting refugee and displaced people fleeing war and persecution within their own counties.

Since January 2022, the local authority has supported asylum seeking children through the Home Office's National Transfer scheme.

The local authority, working with charities and other organisations, set up the Comraich service in December 2022 to lease accommodation for 56 young people aged 16 and over.

Latest Home Office data from June shows that the Highland local authority area, with a population 236,330, also had 143 people living there under the Afghan resettlement programme.

A further 438 Ukrainians have moved to the area under a resettlement scheme launched after the Russian invasion of Ukraine.

The first scheme to be supported by Highland Council was the Vulnerable Persons Resettlement Scheme in 2016.

It enabled families from Syria to be resettled into properties provided by the local authority.

Across Scotland, there are a total of 6,107 asylum seekers, a figure that has been steadily rising in recent years in line with the record numbers of applications across the UK, but it still only accounts for 0.11% of Scotland's total population.

The vast majority of asylum seekers in Scotland - 4,152 - are living in Glasgow.