Inverness barracks asylum seeker plan dropped, says MP

A scheme to house up to 300 male asylum seekers at Cameron Barracks in Inverness has been dropped by the UK government, according to a Highland MP.

The Home Office originally wanted to move people into the barracks by early December and use the site for 12 months, but the plans were delayed.

Angus MacDonald, Lib Dem MP for Inverness, Skye and West Ross-shire, said he has been told by UK Border Security Minister Alex Norris that the plan has been dropped.

The UK Government wanted use the site as part of drive to close asylum hotels, which led to campaigns in support and in opposition.

MacDonald said: "This is the right outcome, and it is a result of the strength of feeling shown by residents, and by the military families connected to Cameron Barracks who made their concerns heard from the very start."

He added: "There was also a strong local feeling that the site itself was simply too close to the city centre, schools and residential areas.

"The sense of closing asylum hotels in town centres in the South of England while opening an Inverness asylum barracks similarly poorly located defied logic."

In early December people took part in demonstrations near the 140-year-old base in Inverness city centre.

One was organised by Highlands Against Hate, which supports refugees coming to Scotland, and another involved supporters of anti-illegal immigration group Peterhead United.

A potential stumbling block to the proposals was that Highland Council believed the barracks would need to be licensed as a house of multiple occupancy.

Usually, an HMO is a property rented out by at least three unrelated people who share the bathroom or toilet and kitchen.

A licence can last for three years.

In March, Highland Council said it had initial discussions with the Home Office on an HMO, but it had not received a licence application.

The UK government previously said it was "furious" at the level of illegal migrants and asylum hotels.

Elsewhere, Asylum seekers have moved into Crowborough training camp in East Sussex.

A spokesperson told BBC Scotland News earlier this year: "This government will close every asylum hotel.

"Work is well underway, with more suitable sites, such as military bases, being brought forward to ease pressure on communities and cut asylum costs.

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

The Home Office has been asked for a comment.

It is an offence to come to the UK without permission, although international law says refugees should not be penalised for illegal entry.

Scotland's social justice secretary, Shirley Anne Somerville, said the Scottish government - along with Highland Council and NHS Highland - repeatedly raised questions around the practical suitability of the site.

She said: "The UK government failed to adequately answer these questions.

"The reported decision not to proceed is in the best interests of the local community and the people who would have been accommodated at the site."

Somerville said Scotland had a long history of welcoming people of all nationalities and faiths, including those seeking refuge and asylum from war and persecution.

Highland Council said it had received no written confirmation of the UK government's plans.

Scottish Conservative MSP for the Highlands and Islands, Tim Eagle, said Inverness residents would be relieved that the UK government had "finally seen sense and abandoned this misguided plan".