Wethersfield: First migrants moved on to former airbase

Forty six migrants have been moved to live at a former RAF base in Essex.

The Home Office wants to place 1,700 adult male migrants at MDP Wethersfield, which would make it the UK's largest asylum accommodation centre.

They were at a processing facility in Kent and had arrived in the UK on small boat crossings, the Home Office said.

Refugee charity Care4Calais said the Wethersfield site was "inappropriate" for use as accommodation.

The Home Office said men would be brought to the site, about eight miles (13km) from Braintree, in phases, adding it would be at capacity by the autumn.

Meanwhile, the High Court has been hearing legal bids to try and stop old airbases being used to accommodate migrants.

Cheryl Avery, director for asylum accommodation at the Home Office, said men arriving at Wethersfield would have been screened with biometric and health testing and had a suitability assessment for housing at the site.

On-site facilities included a GP surgery, accommodation blocks, a dining hall, a multi-faith centre, an indoor basketball court and a gym.

People would not stay at the site for more than nine months, Ms Avery said.

Care4Calais said it would be seeking to provide direct aid to those at Wethersfield, which it described as "inappropriate".

The charity's chief executive officer, Steve Smith, said: "The Wethersfield base is remote, the buildings are in a state of disrepair, and as a former military base the environment is likely to retraumatise refugees who have been imprisoned in brutal military facilities in their home countries."

Refugees should be "housed with dignity", he added.

Immigration minister Robert Jenrick said: "This is absolutely the right policy in the national interest, because it's not fair to the British taxpayer that migrants - those people who have come across illegally in small boats - were being housed in expensive forms of accommodation, but we completely understand the legitimate concerns of local residents."

About 51,000 asylum seekers were being housed in hotels, costing taxpayers about £6m a day, the Home Office said.

Wethersfield is being run by a contractor and manned 24 hours a day with CCTV cameras in place, the Home Office said.

Arrivals to the centre were being offered a welcome pack containing toiletries and details in that person's language about "what it is to be a good neighbour", said Ms Avery.

The Home Office said it was working with Essex Police, which had been in touch with officers in Kent who had worked at a similar facility.

It said it was "applying the lessons we learnt at Napier Barracks in Kent to ensure that Wethersfield is managed well".

Last month, Braintree District Council had sought an injunction to stop Wethersfield being used, but it was denied.

At the High Court on Wednesday, it began its case to seek permission to bring a full legal challenge.

Lawyers for the council told the court the Home Office had failed to take several issues into account, including access to healthcare and "serious issues" with the "ageing" wastewater provision on site.

Wethersfield resident Gabriel Clarke-Holland and West Lindsey District Council in Lincolnshire are also bringing challenges.

West Lindsey's legal bid concerns similar proposals for RAF Scampton.

Home Office lawyers said the three linked claims should not be allowed to have a full hearing.

The case before Mrs Justice Thornton is expected to conclude on Thursday.

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