Furious locals have taken to the streets of a town in East Sussex to protest against Government plans to house asylum seekers at a nearby army barracks. The organisers of the protest in Crowborough estimated that about 4,000 people joined the action on Sunday (November 30).
They told the BBC the turnout was the largest number to date, with similar protest marches having hit the town’s streets in recent weeks. Some Crowborough residents insist their town can’t accommodate hundreds of migrants.
The Government said on Friday it was still “continuing to accelerate plans” to move asylum seekers to the military base.
But it also said it would wait until Crowborough and a second barracks in the Highlands were “fully operational and safe” before moving people in.
Wealden District Council passed a motion formally opposing the Crowborough plans.
The local authority said it had served a planning contravention notice against the Government.
Scotland’s First Minister John Swinney said the plans to house 300 male asylum seekers at Cameron Barracks in Inverness were “made up on the back of an envelope”.
He welcomed the news the Home Office has delayed proposals to place the men there, adding the decision was “an acknowledgement that the plans were not well formulated”.
Plans to move asylum seekers into barracks come amid efforts by ministers to find ways of clamping down on the use of migrant hotels.
A Home Office spokesperson said: “We are furious at the level of illegal migrants and asylum hotels.
“Moving to large military sites is an important part of our reforms to tackle illegal migration and the pull factors that make the UK an attractive destination.
“We are continuing to accelerate plans to move people into Crowborough and Cameron Barracks, when the sites are fully operational and safe.
“We will not replicate the mistakes of the past where rushed plans have led to unsafe and chaotic situations that impacts the local community.”
Earlier this month, hundreds of people protested in Crowborough, where some chanted “Protect our community” and “Keir Starmer‘s a ******”.
Others held placards reading “Detain Process Deport” and “Not Far Right Thugs”.
