Penally asylum seeker camp 'worst thing since Syria'

Asylum seekers previously protested about conditions at Penally camp

An asylum seeker who was housed at an army camp in Pembrokeshire has said living there was the "worst thing to happen to me" since he left Syria.

Penally is set to close after a scathing report by inspectors found the camp was "rundown and unsuitable".

The former Masters student also claimed he was shouted at by some staff.

Clearsprings Group, which manages the site on behalf of the Home Office, said it was "very concerned" by the accusations.

It added it would need more information to be able to investigate the allegations further.

Inspectors found most residents they spoke to said staff were "friendly and treated them with respect".

The man, who said he wished to remain anonymous to protect his family, moved to a hotel in Cardiff last month after he arrived at the camp last October.

Photographs seen by BBC Wales show a lack of social distancing between beds at the camp

He said his health suffered because of "poor conditions" at the camp, including having no heating in his room for more than a fortnight.

"We couldn't sleep because we were six in the room, without privacy, without comfort, with a lot of noise," he said.

Video footage and photographs, previously seen by BBC Wales, appeared to show bathroom floors covered with water, every toilet in one bathroom blocked, and beds in communal rooms positioned less than 2m (6ft) apart.

• Napier Barracks and Penally camp 'filthy and run-down'

• 'Run-down' Penally asylum camp to close on 21 March

• Penally asylum seekers criticise military camp housing

The Home Office has confirmed it would return Penally to the Ministry of Defence by 21 March.

Another military camp used as accommodation for asylum seekers in Kent was described as a "decrepit" block unfit for habitation in the same inspectors' report.

The Home Office previously said it gave "safe and secure accommodation for asylum seekers who would otherwise be destitute".

However, the Syrian man claimed 250 people had shared 30 toilets at Penally.

Inspectors raised concerns over cleanliness at Penally, saying some areas were filthy

"It was unclean, sharing a toilet and shower, sometimes it was cleaned but sometimes it was not - some people made it very bad."

The man, who used to work at an internet café in Syria, said he was "promised" the heater in his room would be fixed, but said it was not.

He recalled it being "very cold" and that the heater was broken for 15 days, adding: "Our health, it was bad in camp because it was cold, unclean, the food was the worst."

The Syrian asylum seeker said he felt "very apprehensive" after seeing the "big gates" at the Penally camp

He said he was shouted at by some staff, from November onwards.

"Most of the managers were friendly, but some security and managers were angry - they had angry language," he said.

'Abuse' of court procedures

Meanwhile, a senior judge has rebuked a leading immigration law firm for a "significant abuse" of court procedures after it made an "utterly hopeless" urgent application to have six asylum seekers transferred out of Penally camp, despite their clients having already been moved.

The application by Duncan Lewis Solicitors was rejected by Mr Justice Swift, who said it should not have been made as all six of the claimants had already been transferred out of the camp.

The judge then referred Duncan Lewis to senior judges for scrutiny because of concerns over "serious defects" in its application.

In a ruling on Wednesday, Dame Victoria Sharp found that the firm's application was "not in fact urgent at all" and that it had "failed to comply with their obligation of candour".