Priti Patel has epic strop at Home Office, branding it 'secretive' and 'evasive'
Former Home Secretary Dame Priti Patel has thrown a massive tantrum at her old department, lashing out at an "alarming and staggering" lack of clarity over plans for an airfield in her area.
Dame Priti called it "evasive" and accused the Government of being "secretive about its intentions" over plans to move asylum seekers to the former RAF base at Wethersfield in Essex. It is a fresh headache for her successor, Suella Braverman, who is already facing flak over the Home Office's botched "Stop the Small Boats" week and the Bibby Stockholm barge debacle.
In a letter to Ms Braverman, which she posted on Twitter, Dame Priti complained that ministers haven't answered her questions over their bid to house 1,700 asylum seekers on the site by the autumn. The Tory right-winger said the failure to provide a direct answer "gives the impression that the Home Office is being evasive".
It follows reports that the site could be in use for five years as the Home Office tries to reduce a huge accomodation bill caused by years of failing to process asylum claims. Dame Priti, whose Witham constituency is near the airfield, said her efforts to clarify what was happening had yielded "no definitive answer".
She fumed: "It is therefore concerning to now see that it appears that the Home Office has put in place plans to use the site for asylum accommodation for a five-year period and considers that this meets the value for money requirement." And she went on to accuse the Home Office of being "secretive about its intentions".
Teachers, civil servants and train drivers walk out in biggest strike in decade
She told Mrs Braverman: "Clear answers now need to be provided by the Home Office and the Government must be transparent rather than evasive. The lack of clarity has been alarming and staggering and I trust you will resolve this urgently."
In response the Home Office said officials "understand" concerns around the use of the site, and said it would respond to Dame Priti's letter "in due course". A spokesman said: "Delivering accommodation on surplus military sites will provide cheaper and more orderly, suitable accommodation for those arriving in small boats whilst helping to reduce the use of hotels.
"These accommodation sites will house asylum seekers in basic, safe and secure accommodation as they await a decision on their claim. In the case of Wethersfield, the Home Office has obtained planning permission to use the site for 12 months.
"We understand the concerns of local communities and will work closely with councils and key partners to manage the impact of using these sites, including liaising with local police to make sure appropriate arrangements are in place."
No 10 yesterday said Ms Braverman still has Rishi Sunak's full confidence in spite of a series of high-profile problems while he was holidaying in California. While he was away, the PM's bungling top team planned a swathe of announcements to show they are trying to fix the broken asylum system on what they had dubbed “Stop The Boats Week". But it turned into a farce.
More than 16,000 people have made the dangerous journey since the start of the year, and last week Home Office figures showed the number since 2018 has passed 100,000. It's the cause of much angst within the Tory party, with bigmouth Lee Anderson sparking fury by claiming “f*** off back to France”, before later admitting the Government had “failed” to tackle illegal immigration.
To make matters worse a £400,000 Home Office drone used to monitor boats in the Channel crashed into the sea. And ministers were forced to drop a daft idea to send migrants 4,000 miles away to Ascension Island just hours after it was announced.
On top of that the Bibby Stockholm barge - one of Ms Braverman's pet projects - had to be evacuated after Legionella bacteria was discovered onboard. No 10 yesterday insisted it hopes to get asylum seekers back "as soon as possible".
Read more similar news:
Comments:
comments powered by Disqus
