Linton-on-Ouse asylum centre an 'open prison in middle of nowhere'

The government wants to house up to 1,500 men at an ex-RAF station in North Yorkshire

Villagers have branded a planned asylum centre on an ex-RAF station site an "open prison in the middle of nowhere".

The Home Office wants to place up to 1,500 male asylum seekers at Linton-on-Ouse near York.

Residents have flooded the prime minster and home secretary with dozens of letters opposing the proposal.

The government previously said the centre would help towards saving £4.7m in hotel costs.

Locals encouraged "villagers of all ages" to join a "vigorous campaign" against the plans, which they said were announced without warning.

The village has a population of 1,100 according to the 2011 Census, but the Linton-on-Ouse Action Group estimated that the closure of the RAF base in 2020 reduced the figure to about 700.

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Olga Matthias, from the group, which led the letter-writing campaign, said the Home Office had chosen "the wrong place, the wrong plan and the wrong process."

"They may be able to leave the camp but where will they go? They're surrounded by fields.

"One councillor described the plan as Guantanamo on Ouse, but given we're surrounded by water I'd describe it as Alcatraz," she told BBC Radio York .

Linton-on-Ouse villagers "young and old" sent 150 letters to the government urging plans for a proposed asylum centre to be dropped

Jessie Hunton, who penned one of the letters, wrote: "When asylum-seekers were housed in a hotel in Priti Patel's constituency, the Home Office stated they should be housed in major conurbations with access to networks and facilities.

"Linton-on-Ouse is not a major conurbation and has limited infrastructure which would struggle to support such an increased number."

Another villager wrote: "How do you honestly believe a village 11 miles from the nearest city, with one park, one school, and one small store, is the best place for people who need integrating with society?"

The Ministry of Defence closed the RAF station at Linton-on-Ouse in 2020

Alison Thewliss, the chair of the All-Party Parliamentary Group on Immigration Detention said she fully supported the Linton-on-Ouse Action Group.

She said the Home Office had "foisted the centre on to local residents without consultation."

The Home Office has previously apologised to residents for the way the announcement was made.

Ms Thewliss said facilities in the area were not "suitable or appropriate" to deal with an "overwhelming number of people coming into a small area".

She said a recent visit to a Napier Barracks in Kent, currently being used to house asylum seekers, allowed her to see first-hand how profoundly "unsuitable and dehumanising" it was.

The Linton-on-Ouse asylum centre proposal is part of the government's new migration policy, which also includes sending some asylum seekers to Rwanda.

The Home Office has previously said services provided on site would "minimise" the impact on the local community.

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