Police warn RAF Barnham asylum plan poses 'risk'

Norfolk and Suffolk police forces have warned plans to use an RAF base to house asylum seekers would pose a "critical risk" to their specialist training.

Proposals to use RAF Barnham, near Thetford, to house up to 3,750 migrants were revealed in June, sparking protests outside the base.

In July, West Suffolk councillors unanimously agreed that the site was not suitable, but it was reported the Home Office was looking into escalating the plans and trying to secure a final decision from the government.

The two local police forces have leased the base for several years as a specialist operations training centre and told the government that its timeline for vacating the site within weeks was not "achievable or realistic".

Nick Timothy, the Conservative MP for West Suffolk, said last month the Home Office had submitted an "Urgent Crown Development" bid to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government.

This would enable the government to consider the proposals and make a decision, reports the Local Democracy Reporting Service.

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In a letter to Sarah Jones MP, the policing minister, Norfolk and Suffolk police forces said RAF Barnham was a "critical policing asset that underpins the delivery of specialist training across our two constabularies".

"These capabilities cannot simply be transferred into standard training environments without significant compromise and disruption," they added.

According to the letter, until June, the forces had planned to buy the site from the Ministry of Defence.

They said they would need up to six months to safely vacate the site and find an alternative location "without causing significant detriment to policing capabilities" locally, regionally and nationally.

They also raised concerns about "heightened community tension and unrest" from the use of the base as asylum accommodation.

A Home Office spokesperson said: "The concerns of communities are central to our immigration reforms, which is why we are working with local authorities and others to fairly disperse asylum seekers across basic accommodation, including ex-military sites.

"Five military sites are either in use or being explored to house asylum seekers.

"We are seeing results. Asylum seekers in hotels are down 35 per cent in the last year and down 63 per cent from the peak of 56,000 in September 2023."

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