Military site housing asylum seekers now half full

A military barracks in Crowborough is now housing 350 asylum seekers, according to the Home Office, as the government works to reduce the number of hotels being used for accommodation.

The former cadet training camp is now at more than half of its capacity, nearly three months after the first people moved in.

Reform UK leader Nigel Farage visited the East Sussex town as local Tory MP Nus Ghani criticised the use of the site for asylum seekers saying it had not saved money.

Border Security and Asylum Minister Alex Norris said the government was adding capacity at military sites and intended to do more.

Norris said the military sites provided "safe and humane accommodation".

He said: "We know that the traffickers say 'come to the UK, live in a hotel, work illegally' – well, we're changing that reality."

Peaceful protests were held against the camp in Crowborough, but anti-racism campaigners said they led to tension.

Adam, from Stand Up to Racism, said some protesters targeted asylum seekers, individuals, community spaces and businesses who "feel like they're doing the right thing by welcoming people".

Politicians from the Conservatives, Reform UK, the Green Party and the Liberal Democrats have criticised the Labour government's policy.

Ghani said there were no cost benefits to using the camp, adding it had been confirmed by the Home Office as "no cheaper than housing them in hotels".

Farage, who has repeatedly linked those arriving on small boats to increased crime, said: "There were very, very few people put in this camp to begin with.

"It went up to 350 yesterday, a further 30 [have] come in today. In three months' time, let's see what they say."

Sussex Police said recorded crime in the Crowborough neighbourhood had decreased compared with the same time last year.

Zack Polanski, Green Party leader, said he sympathised with the community, adding: "We shouldn't be pitting our British-born communities against people who are looking for a better life."

He added it was "dehumanising" to house people fleeing war and persecution in a barracks.

Will Forster, Woking's Liberal Democrat MP, said his party would use Nightingale-style processing centres to "end the need for hotels and military accommodation".

Forster said: "The majority of the public is tired of the headline-grabbing from Reform, the Conservatives and the home secretary. They just want an asylum system that's fair, controlled and efficient."

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