'Kent is at breaking point' say leaders in desperate letter to Home Secretary Suella Braverman

Council leaders from Kent have warned the county is at "breaking point" because of the burden of accommodating migrants.

In a strongly-worded letter to Home Secretary Suella Braverman, the leaders of 14 authorities including Kent County Council and Medway raised a series of concerns.

They warned that conditions at the overcrowded Manston migrant processing facility could lead to unrest.

"The situation at Manston is critical," the local authority chiefs said.

"We now have approaching 4,000 service users contained within segregated marquees as we approach the coldest months of the year, some having been on roll mats for over a month."

There are "reports of tensions growing and concern about the potential for disorder".

The council leaders also warned about the rise in far-right activity in the county, highlighting the petrol bomb attack in Dover on Sunday.

In the letter, the leaders claim ‘allocating Kent & Medway an additional 1,300 adults to accommodate by December 2023 shows the Home Office have entirely disregarded the wider part we have played and additional burdens we face unique to Kent.'

They say the county's public services including health social care and schools are already under extreme pressure from surging local demand and the cost-of-living crisis. 

It comes as Migrants being held in the Manston processing centre in Kent have begged for help as they described the conditions as a "prison".

Protesters gathered outside the centre on Wednesday calling for it to be shut down amid reports of over crowding and unhealthy conditions.

Immigration minister Robert Jenrick said the number of migrants at the Manston migrant processing centre had "fallen substantially" on Tuesday, as hundreds were shipped out to hotels, with more expected to be moved this week.

Ending the letter, the leaders said: "We recognise the significant pressures facing the Home Office, but equally we request that, as Secretary of State, you consider the sizeable, disproportionate and unique pressures facing your partners in Kent & Medway."

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