Asked by: Lord Cameron of Lochiel (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether the Queen's Own Highlanders Regimental Association will be required to relocate from Cameron Barracks in Inverness as a result of plans to temporarily house asylum seekers there; and if so, where they will be relocated to, and will they be compensated for any costs incurred.
Answered by Lord Hanson of Flint - Minister of State (Home Office)
Discussions are underway to use the Cameron Barracks site for asylum accommodation. Consideration of this site is ongoing and any final decision to utilise any site for the intended purposes will be made once the relevant factors have been properly considered.
The government remains committed to engaging with local authorities and stakeholders, and to transitioning away from hotel use as soon as practicable.
Asked by: Siân Berry (Green Party - Brighton Pavilion)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment she has made of the potential merits of amending (a) visa and (b) asylum routes for people fleeing conflict in Sudan with British national immediate family members in the UK by (i) waiving income rules, (ii) allowing asylum applications to be made in third party countries and (c) bringing forward other measures to help reunite families separated by conflict.
Answered by Alex Norris - Minister of State (Home Office)
Sudanese nationals who wish to come to the UK to join a family member here need a family visa. Applications can be made for a family visa to live with a spouse or partner; fiancé, fiancée or proposed civil partner; parent; child; relative who is providing care.
The financial requirements form part of the ‘core’ requirements of the Family Immigration Rules. Expecting family migrants and their sponsors to be financially independent is reasonable, both to them and the taxpayer.
However, where someone cannot meet the core requirements, including those relating to finances, permission will still be granted where refusal would breach Article 8 of the European Convention on Human Rights.
As part of the Immigration White Paper reforms, the government intends to set out a new family policy that will cover all UK residents, including those who are British, settled, on work routes or refugees seeking to bring family members to the UK.
The UK has a proud history of providing protection and we continue to welcome refugees and people in need through our safe and legal routes. However, there is no provision within our Immigration Rules for someone to be allowed to travel to the UK to seek asylum or temporary refuge. Those who need international protection should claim asylum in the first safe country they reach – that is the fastest route to safety.
Whilst we sympathise with people in many difficult situations around the world, including the current situation in Sudan, we are not bound to consider asylum claims from the very large numbers of people overseas who might wish to come here. It is important that safe and legal routes are sustainable, well managed and in line with the UK’s capacity to welcome, accommodate and integrate refugees. We do not currently have any plans to open a specific route for people affected by the conflict in Sudan.
Additionally, the recently announced Asylum Policy Statement set out a new model for refugee resettlement. We will give greater say to communities and support refugees as they settle, become self-sufficient, and contribute to their local areas. This new model will be based on local capacity to support refugees, and arrival numbers will be tightly controlled by the government.
To achieve this, we will:
• Reform refugee sponsorship to give voluntary and community sector organisations a greater role in resettlement through named sponsorship, within caps set by government.
• Introduce a capped route for refugee and displaced students to study in the UK, helping talented refugees to continue their studies, realise their potential and be able to return to their country and help rebuild it as soon as circumstances allow.
• Establish a capped route for skilled refugees and displaced people to come to the UK for work, building on the experience of the Displaced Talent Mobility Pilot.
Our intention is that those arriving on the reformed resettlement routes will be on the ten-year route to settlement. However, this will be subject to wider consultation.
Asked by: Mims Davies (Conservative - East Grinstead and Uckfield)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether her Department has issued guidance to local authorities on (a) when and (b) how often they can issue legal stop notices in relation to the housing of asylum seekers in their areas.
Answered by Alex Norris - Minister of State (Home Office)
Planning enforcement action is not a matter for the Home Office. This government will close every asylum hotel. Work is well underway, with more suitable sites being brought forward to ease pressure on communities across the country so that the Home Office continues to meet its statutory obligations while also carefully considering the impact on local areas.
Asked by: Max Wilkinson (Liberal Democrat - Cheltenham)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment her Department has made of the potential impact of supporting work asylum seekers who do not qualify for benefits on local authority spending.
Answered by Alex Norris - Minister of State (Home Office)
Asylum seekers are not eligible for mainstream benefits (such as universal credit) which are available to British citizens and other permanent residents. However, if they would otherwise be destitute, the Home Office currently has a legal duty to offer support, which generally consist of providing accommodation and a cash allowance to cover their essential living needs.
We will be revoking that duty, restoring a discretionary power for the Home Office to offer support, as previously provided under UK law.
We will deny support to those who are able to support themselves, or have deliberately made themselves destitute. We will remove support from those who fail to comply with UK law or conditions of support.
Details of how eligibility considerations will apply will be set out in published guidance in due course.
Asked by: Lord Cameron of Lochiel (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what consideration they have given to processing asylum claims on site at (1) Cameron barracks, and (2) Crowborough army training camp, when those sites are operational.
Answered by Lord Hanson of Flint - Minister of State (Home Office)
Discussions are underway regarding the use of Cameron Barracks and Crowborough for asylum accommodation. It is our longstanding policy not to comment on individual asylum accommodation sites, or on operational arrangements around those sites.
The Home Office already has digital interviewing capability that enables more claimants to be interviewed remotely. We will explore all options to provide better capacity.
The Home Office is working closely with local authorities, police, and community partners to ensure both sites operate safely and respectfully, and all alternative accommodation sites will provide basic, functional, and humane accommodation while asylum claims are processed.
Asked by: Kieran Mullan (Conservative - Bexhill and Battle)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether the Planning Inspectorate has provided notice to Wealden District Council of a 21-day site notice under the Crown Development guidance in relation to the use of Crowborough Training Camp for asylum seeker accommodation.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
The Planning Inspectorate can find no record of an application or appeal being made to it in relation to this development.
Asked by: Kieran Mullan (Conservative - Bexhill and Battle)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether the Planning Inspectorate has consulted Wealden District Council on the application to use the Crowborough Training Camp for asylum seeker accommodation.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
The Planning Inspectorate has no record of receiving an application or appeal in relation to the site in question.
I otherwise refer the hon. Member to the answer given to question UIN 91420 on 20 November 2025.
Asked by: Mims Davies (Conservative - East Grinstead and Uckfield)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what information her Department holds on the legal challenges made by Wealden District Council relating to the publicising of applications under section 293B of the Town and Country Planning Act 1990 relating to the Crowborough Training Camp and Asylum Seeker accommodation.
Answered by Alex Norris - Minister of State (Home Office)
Discussions are underway to use the Crowborough site for asylum accommodation. Consideration of this site is ongoing and any final decision to utilise any site for the intended purposes will be made once the relevant factors have been properly considered.
We continue to engage with local authorities, property partners and cross-government to assess feasibility and accelerate delivery where possible, ensuring any development is safe, appropriate and compliant with planning regulations.
The Home Office continues to engage regularly with representatives from the local authority, the NHS, the Police, and local partners, including via Multi Agency Forums pre-delivery and post-Go Live of the proposed site to address the concerns of those most impacted and to identify ways to keep them informed.
We do not comment on legal matters. We will ensure that any development is safe, appropriate and compliant with the relevant planning regulations and processes where required.
Asked by: Mims Davies (Conservative - East Grinstead and Uckfield)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what information her Department holds on whether any directions enabling or inviting objections to a section 293B application regarding the Crowborough Training Camp and Asylum Seeker accommodation have been issued Wealden District Council.
Answered by Alex Norris - Minister of State (Home Office)
Discussions are underway to use the Crowborough site for asylum accommodation. Consideration of this site is ongoing and any final decision to utilise any site for the intended purposes will be made once the relevant factors have been properly considered.
We continue to engage with local authorities, property partners and cross-government to assess feasibility and accelerate delivery where possible, ensuring any development is safe, appropriate and compliant with planning regulations.
The Home Office continues to engage regularly with representatives from the local authority, the NHS, the Police, and local partners, including via Multi Agency Forums pre-delivery and post-Go Live of the proposed site to address the concerns of those most impacted and to identify ways to keep them informed.
We do not comment on legal matters. We will ensure that any development is safe, appropriate and compliant with the relevant planning regulations and processes where required.
Asked by: Mims Davies (Conservative - East Grinstead and Uckfield)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what information her Department holds on whether Wealden District Council has submitted any (a) legal challenge and (b) letter before action to any aspects of the Town and Country Planning Act 1990 in relation to the Crowborough Training Camp and Asylum Seeker accommodation.
Answered by Alex Norris - Minister of State (Home Office)
Discussions are underway to use the Crowborough site for asylum accommodation. Consideration of this site is ongoing and any final decision to utilise any site for the intended purposes will be made once the relevant factors have been properly considered.
We continue to engage with local authorities, property partners and cross-government to assess feasibility and accelerate delivery where possible, ensuring any development is safe, appropriate and compliant with planning regulations.
The Home Office continues to engage regularly with representatives from the local authority, the NHS, the Police, and local partners, including via Multi Agency Forums pre-delivery and post-Go Live of the proposed site to address the concerns of those most impacted and to identify ways to keep them informed.
We do not comment on legal matters. We will ensure that any development is safe, appropriate and compliant with the relevant planning regulations and processes where required.