Plan for migrant camp at ex-RAF base to be drawn up

Detailed plans for a proposed migrant camp in Suffolk are to be drawn up after the Home Office awarded a £3.4m contract.

Construction giant Kier has been hired to design the camp at RAF Barnham, a former nuclear weapons store near Thetford, Norfolk, earmarked for asylum seekers.

The revelation has raised fresh concerns about the amount of public money being spent on the base before a final decision has been made, the Local Democracy Reporting Service said.

The Home Office, which recently cut the number of migrants planned for the site from 1,250 to 931, insists no decision has yet been taken.

The site is among three former military bases being proposed for asylum seekers as the government vowed to move away from hotel-based accommodation.

It has said it intends to use Urgent Crown Development, a fast-track planning route which bypasses the local council.

The base, which has most recently been used for police training, is thought to need extensive work, including major upgrades to drainage and electricity.

Any construction would need a second deal, which the Home Office has not committed to.

The contract with Kier also allows ministers to scrap the work ''at any time and for any reason''.

There had been widespread opposition to the proposal to use the site, including protests outside the base.

Scott Hussey, a Reform UK county council cabinet member, called on the Home Office to reveal the full cost expected at the site.

''The Home Office has already handed aptly-named Kier Construction £3.4m just for design work, and this is before a single brick has been laid or Portakabin installed,'' he said.

''The real refurbishment bill is still to come and could come in at tens of millions of pounds.

''Successive governments have never found enough money to give our own armed forces decent accommodation – including when this site was used by the RAF – yet for illegal immigrant accommodation the money flows freely. We deserve to know the full cost before any decision is made.''

A Home Office spokesman said: "The government is working on a fairer distribution of asylum accommodation across the country, with over £1bn saved in costs since the election.

"This includes closing all asylum hotels and moving to alternative accommodation, including former military sites.

"These are designed to be self-contained, with 24/7 security and CCTV, to minimise the impact on the local community."

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