RAF base wrong place for asylum site - councillors

1 hour ago

Richard EdwardsNorth Yorkshire political reporter

The former MoD site is one of three the government said could be used to house asylum seekers

PA Media Street sign pointing the way to RAF Linton-on-Ouse — The former MoD site is one of three the government said could be used to house asylum seekers

Community leaders have said they will "campaign to the end" to prevent a former RAF station being turned into a centre for more than 1,000 asylum seekers.

The Home Office has announced it will seek planning permission to use RAF Linton-on-Ouse, near York, to house asylum seekers while their claims are processed.

A similar plan was scrapped in 2022 after public protests and the threat of legal action from the former Hambleton Council.

North Yorkshire Conservative councillor Malcolm Taylor, who represents Linton-on Ouse, said: "This was the wrong place in 2022 and it is the wrong place now."

Meanwhile, parish council chairman Marc Goddard said: "We fought this before and we'll fight it again."

Linton-on-Ouse is one of three Ministry of Defence (MoD) sites the Home Office has proposed using to house almost 4,000 asylum seekers, as the government seeks to move people out of hotels, with other proposed sites in Oxfordshire and Suffolk.

Sir Alec Shelbrooke, Wetherby and Easingwold MP, said: "Linton-on-Ouse has been shown to be the wrong place in the past.

"Effectively putting 1,200 people into a small village like Linton, which just simply doesn't have the facilities or the infrastructure to deal with them, is clearly the wrong answer."

Parish council chairman Marc Goddard said villagers would fight the proposal

The image shows a man standing outdoors in front of a red-brick church. He is wearing dark sunglasses and a long-sleeved, button-up shirt with a blue-and-white checkered pattern. The man has a shaved head and is standing upright on a grassy area. — Parish council chairman Marc Goddard said villagers would fight the proposal

Goddard said: "This is a village of around 700 people, and 1,200 men, whether they were Scottish men, Welsh men or Chinese men, it's not doable, it doesn't work.

"The Home Office has no idea of the infrastructure around here, how difficult it is to get people in and out of this place and they had no idea last time and these same problems still exist, and it's why it stopped last time."

He added he wanted government officials to visit the area.

"They need to come, we said last time, they need to come, they didn't come, they eventually did. They saw it was wrong and they stopped it."

Asked what would happen if the plan for Linton was approved, Goddard said: "If it actually does happen then the government need to put something in place to look after the people that they're actually putting on that camp, because the water's being turned off, the electricity has been too. But they need to help the community as well.

"We will hold a meeting and we will let the people of this village know what's going on, and I would just say watch this space, try and stay calm and be prepared, because we will fight."

If plans are approved 1,200 asylum seekers could be housed at the former RAF base

PA Media The image shows the entrance to a former military facility, viewed from a road leading up to a checkpoint area. The entrance is controlled with barriers and multiple warning signs. In the front-left of the image, a rectangular white sign with black text reads: VISITORS VEHICLES with a left-pointing arrow. Below it, a red sign with white text states: DRIVERS TRAVELLING FROM EUROPE TO IDENTIFY THEMSELVES TO SECURITY STAFF — If plans are approved 1,200 asylum seekers could be housed at the former RAF base

Taylor said: "We know what happened four years ago and the angst and grief that it caused the community and there's ways to manage things and this is not the way to manage it.

"Nothing's changed from four years ago. If anything, the base is less suitable now than it was.

"But this isn't about just saying we don't want them here, this is about more than a thousand young males being placed in this village with a population of half of that.

"What are they going to do? They're not under lock and key, they're free to come and go."

The Home Office said the proposed accommodation would be "basic" and more suitable than hotels.

North Yorkshire Conservative councillor Malcolm Taylor said villagers had "huge concerns" about the proposal

The image shows a man standing in front of a red-brick church. He is wearing a short-sleeved white button-up shirt. Sunglasses are resting on top his head. — North Yorkshire Conservative councillor Malcolm Taylor said villagers had "huge concerns" about the proposal

As the Home Office announced its plans for Linton, it confirmed Northallerton's Allerton Court hotel would no longer be used as asylum accommodation, and had been "returned to the community."

Labour minister for border security and asylum Alex Norris said: "We promised to close every asylum hotel and hand them back to communities. That is exactly what we are doing here in North Yorkshire.

"This is a system being brought back under control - and we will not stop until the job is done."

But Carl Les, North Yorkshire Council's Conservative leader, said the Home Office made its announcement without any "prior discussions or engagement" with the council.

In a statement, Les said: "It is extremely disappointing. To be clear, there has been no previous contact with us by any government department on their thinking or planning around this.

"It would therefore not be helpful for us to comment in detail on it.

"We will be urgently seeking more information and considering our position on this matter before making any further statement."

The BBC understands the Home Office's position is that it has engaged with local authorities affected and will continue to do so.

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