Robert Jenrick was questioned by several Conservative MPs in parliament yesterday, who had not been given notice that hotels in their constituencies would be used as temporary accommodation.
Ben Bradley, who represents Mansfield in Nottinghamshire, said a hotel in the area was set up on Saturday, but he was not told until Sunday, and on Monday several local people presented themselves as homeless after being kicked out”.
Mr Jenrick responded: This is not a situation that any of us would want to be in, it’s the product of record numbers of people crossing the Channel and of a failure to plan in the months prior to this sudden surge. We need to move forward, ensure Manston is operating legally and correctly as our first duty, and then ensure that any further accommodation is procured in a sensible way, and have proper communications with local authorities.”
Home secretary Suella Braverman was accused of unlawfully detaining asylum seekers at Manston, a former military base in Kent, after failing to procure sufficient accommodation for them to be moved to. The processing centre is intended to hold a maximum of 1,600 people for around 24 hours, but at its peak last month held 4,000 people, with some families sleeping in tents for more than a month.
This story is from the November 17, 2022 edition of The Independent.
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This story is from the November 17, 2022 edition of The Independent.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 8,500+ magazines and newspapers.
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