MP concerned by 'nationally important' asylum plans

An MP has said he is "deeply concerned" after plans for asylum seekers' accommodation on a former military base have been deemed "nationally important and urgent".

On Monday, Lib Dem MP for Bicester and Woodstock Calum Miller posted on Facebook showing written confirmation that the Ministry of Defence (MoD) site near Bicester, Oxfordshire, had been informed of the plans in November.

"If ministers have known for eight months, what exactly makes this urgent now?," he asked.

The Home Office confirmed that planning permission was being sought at three new sites, including MoD Bicester, but has not yet directly commented on Miller's question.

Miller shared two images along with his post, one of which is a letter by Matthew Pennycook MP, Minister of State for Housing and Planning.

He writes that the planning proposal to house about 1,250 asylum seekers at the Bicester base, which "astounded" local charities and politicians, had been deemed "Nationally Important and Urgent".

The second image in the post captures comments by Minister for Defence Readiness and Industry, Luke Pollard MP, at the House of Commons on 9 July.

He said the MoD had first been informed of proposals to use the base for asylum accommodation in November 2025.

Under the Urgent Crown Development process, a special procedure will be adopted to fast track the application, involving an expedited consultation process on behalf of the Secretary of State.

"I am deeply concerned by this decision," MIller wrote.

"I will be seeking to raise this in the House later today."

However, he did not pose the question to Local Government Minister Alison McGovern during the sitting.

Labour has pledged to stop using hotels, a costly form of accommodation that has become a focal point for anti-migrant protests.

As of March this year, 20,885 (21%) asylum seekers were in hotels and 72,768 (75%) were in other accommodation as they awaited decisions.

In 2005 the then Labour government abandoned plans for an asylum seekers accommodation centre on the same site.

Two separate groups gathered in Bicester town centre to protest the plans on Sunday, with some raising safety concerns about using the base, while Oxfordshire Stand Up to Racism called for the processing of asylum claims to be made "more efficient".

On 25 June the Home Office wrote that as it "ramps up" closures of asylum hotels across the UK, the government was instead "scaling up the use of large, basic accommodation for illegal migrants".

"As part of this, discussions are underway to use three new sites to house asylum seekers, with planning permission being sought at MoD Bicester, MoD Barnham and MoD Linton-on-Ouse," it added.

The sites could house about 3,750 asylum seekers if planning permission is granted.