Home Office delays plan to house 300 male asylum seekers at Highland barracks

The Home Office has delayed plans to house 300 male asylum seekers at an army barracks in the Scottish Highlands.

The plans for Cameron Barracks in Inverness had received a backlash from Highland Council and some local residents.

The UK Government said while it was still “continuing to accelerate plans” to move asylum seekers to the Scottish site, as well as the Crowborough military base in East Sussex, it would wait until they were “fully operational and safe”.

In a statement, the Home Office said it would “not replicate the mistakes of the past where rushed plans led to unsafe and chaotic situations”.

Questions had previously been raised about the suitability of Cameron Barracks, which is in need of a £1.3 million refurbishment.

Around 300 men were set to be moved to the barracks before Christmas.

Ministers have been looking at ways of clamping down on the use of asylum seeker hotels.

Figures released on Thursday showed the number of asylum seekers being housed temporarily in UK hotels has risen by 13% in three months.

There were 36,273 people staying in such accommodation at the end of September, while they were awaiting a decision on their asylum claims.

The issue has come to the fore in recent times with protests outside hotels.

It also comes as the Scottish Government, along with more than a dozen councils, declared a housing emergency.

“We are furious at the level of illegal migrants and asylum hotels,” a spokesperson for the Home Office said.

“Moving to large military sites is an important part of our reforms to tackle illegal migration and the pull factors that make the UK an attractive destination.

“We are continuing to accelerate plans to move people into Crowborough and Cameron Barracks, when the sites are fully operational and safe.

“We will not replicate the mistakes of the past where rushed plans have led to unsafe and chaotic situations that impacts the local community.”