A week or so before Christmas,  we were advised that the Home Office was considered a hotel in my Ward to be ‘stood up’ as an Asylum Contingency Hotel.  On the Friday just before Christmas (23rd December) they finally confirmed that that they had made the decision to go ahead.

It is not policy to name asylum hotels, so I won’t.  But people locally will know which hotel I am referring to.

There is talk of up to 400 asylum seekers and as I write (2nd January) the Home Office has yet to provide any further detail on numbers or the make up of those that will be staying at the allocated venue.

Let’s be absolutely clear.  This is a Home Office decision – in fact Minister Robert Jenrick’s decision.  This is despite representations from West Northants Council, local councillors, the local MP, the police, fire  and other agencies indicating the total unsuitability of this location – a rural hotel,  with one small local shop,  a limited subsidised bus service (which is under threat of loss from April of this year) and although a beautiful location, there are limited things to do.  This has nothing to do with those seeking asylum.  It is simply the lack of practicalities of choosing such a location.

There will be a number of drop in sessions taking place for residents to find out more (the first of which will be Tuesday 3rd January between 1.30pm and 3.30pm) at the village hall.  Concerns have been raised that this forum is during the day and many may not be able to attend.  These issues have been raised with the council and it has confirmed that this will not be the only drop in session.

This is a challenge for the Parish Council, as this is way outside the scope of anything that a parish would be expected to have to handle, and, like the Unitary council,  they have so far been provided with scant information.  There has been an information vacuum which is most unhelpful – again this responsibility sits squarely with the Home Office.

What is an asylum seeker? 

“An asylum seeker is someone who is in need of, and in search of refuge. The right to seek asylum from persecution in other countries is a universal human right, set out in Article 14 of the UN Declaration of Human Rights”.

There is much debate about the use of small boats to cross the channel,  but the fact of the matter is there is no way of knowing who is eligible to seek asylum and who isn’t until people arrive on our shores, make a claim and have this claim reviewed.   This is the whole debate about alternative safe routes.  For many,  they simply do not exist.  What is known is that 75% of those who do make an asylum claim have it granted.

There are some important points to note and some further information provided in links below which may be useful for residents.

First, is a Question and Answer section on the council’s website:

https://www.westnorthants.gov.uk/resettlement/asylum-seekers-contingency-accommodation

Second,  is some information from the Refugee Council:

The truth about asylum

Thirdly some information from Full Fact:

https://fullfact.org/immigration/can-refugees-enter-uk-illegally/

https://fullfact.org/immigration/refugees-first-safe-country/

And finally, a link to the UN 1951 convention relating to the status of refugees:

https://www.unhcr.org/uk/3b66c2aa10

This is a complex issue,  oversimplified in the British Press.  I would urge people to read more widely and understand the issues involved.

Our main objective as a community will be to do our best to manage the impact of this decision on our communities and continue to lobby government to ensure that West Northants Council receives fair funding to support those seeking asylum and to lessen any potential impacts on local services.  Unlike the arrangements made for those from Afghanistan and Ukraine, the council receives NO funding from government.  A completely ridiculous state of affairs if you ask me.

If anyone has any wider concerns,  it is suggested that you write to Daventry MP,  Chris Heaton-Harris using:

chris.heatonharris.mp@parliament.uk

And the Minister responsible:

robert.jenrick.mp@parliament.uk

You can also contact the Home Office, using:

public.enquiries@homeoffice.gov.uk

   Leave a comment