Plans to house asylum seekers at RAF Scampton as cabins placed on runway

A council leader has conceded that the fight against plans to house asylum seekers at a former RAF base is effectively over after portable cabins were installed on the runway.

The Home Office's proposals for migrants to be moved to RAF Scampton, in Lincolnshire, are subject to a judicial review after a legal challenge by West Lindsey District Council.

A series of public "engagement events" is due to take place at Lincolnshire Showground.

But after cabins were seen being craned onto the runway, Lincolnshire County Council leader Cllr Martin Hill said: "I think we have to assume that it will happen and that it is going to place a large burden on us as a county council, but also on others."

He added: "The political view is that we accept Scampton is going to happen and we understand why the government is going down that road."

If the plans go ahead, up to 2,000 asylum seekers could move onto the site, which was home to the famous Dambusters squadron during the Second World War and the Red Arrows aerobatics team.

The first refugees are due to arrive in October.

Cllr Hill added: "There are the people coming from Afghanistan who previously supported the allied troops, there are the Ukrainians, the people coming on boats, there are people legitimately seeking asylum, there is a whole long list of them.

"There is a big concern in Lincolnshire because on top of that, we have quite a few hotels who are currently housing migrants and we now also have the prospect of 2,000 plus migrants potentially coming to Scampton."

Sarah Carter, of the Save Our Scampton campaign, said she was not surprised the cabins had arrived but added: "It's a bit disrespectful because we got this judicial review pending - what happens if we win it? Then they've got to take everything back off at taxpayers' expense.

"Obviously it will get people in a panic because they'll feel it's all done, but that's not the case."

Hamish Falconer, Labour parliamentary candidate for Lincoln, started a petition which now has more than 75,000 signatures.

He said: "The Conservatives have just craned shipping containers straight onto one of the most valuable parts of the airfield, the apron that until recently the Red Arrows used.

"Despite all the assurances from the PM and Home Office that they care about our economy they are wantonly trashing the industrial and aviation potential of Scampton."

He called on the Home Office to remove the containers before "they cause irrecoverable damage" to facilities.

Scampton Holdings, which is behind plans for a £300m redevelopment of the former airbase, said there had been a lack of engagement and transparency from the Home Office.

Director Tom Lear said: "To be clear, if the Home Office inflicts damage to the airside facilities at Scampton, it will rapidly become cost prohibitive for Scampton Holdings, or any other party, to recover the airside at Scampton to a viable, useable standard, thereby rendering the aviation capability and significant economic opportunity defunct."

The government said the accommodation will be "basic, safe, and secure" while asylum seekers await decisions on their claims.

A Home Office spokesperson said: "Delivering accommodation on surplus military sites will end the use of expensive hotels to house those arriving in small boats."

"We continue to work closely with local authorities to address the local communities' concerns. We are working hard to deliver these sites as quickly as possible."

It comes as the backlog of asylum claims in the UK hit a new record high.

In total, there were 134,046 cases being dealt with by the Home Office in relation to 175,457 people waiting for an initial decision at the end of June 2023, up 57% year-on-year from 89,231, which was another record high.

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