Cameron Barracks asylum seeker plans ‘made up on back of an envelope’ – Swinney

Scotland’s First Minister has said UK Government plans to house 300 male asylum seekers at an army barracks in the Highlands were “made up on the back of an envelope”.

John Swinney welcomed the news that the Home Office has delayed proposals to place the men at Cameron Barracks in Inverness.

He said the decision was “an acknowledgement that the plans were not well formulated”, and said the Home Office should do “some homework” before taking forward such proposals.

The UK Government said on Friday that while it was still “continuing to accelerate plans” to move asylum seekers to the Scottish site, as well as the Crowborough military base in East Sussex, it would wait until they were “fully operational and safe”.

Highland Council and some local residents have raised concerns about the proposals to house asylum seekers at Cameron Barracks.

Asked about his response to the delay, Swinney told the Press Association on Saturday: “I think the announcement from the Home Office of a delay to their plans indicates that these plans were put together on the back of an envelope

“We’ve said all along that there had to be detailed engagement and dialogue with Highland Council and the Scottish Government about these plans, and despite our best efforts, we have been unable to have that detailed engagement.

“I can’t answer detailed questions about what would be the arrangements around the Cameron Barracks, and that’s because the answers are not forthcoming from the Home Office.

“So I think the overnight decision from the Home Office is welcome because it’s an acknowledgement that the plans were not well formulated.

“And I would respectfully say to the Home Office, if they want to take forward plans of this nature, they should do some thinking, some homework first.”

Questions had previously been raised about the suitability of Cameron Barracks, which is in need of a £1.3 million refurbishment.

Concerns were also raised about “community cohesion”, and how the local authority could ensure people were prepared for the “sudden” presence of 300 asylum seekers.

In recent months, protests have regularly taken place at hotels housing asylum seekers at various locations in Scotland.

Asked whether the protests themselves are racist, he said: “Yes, they are, because they are expressing hostility towards individuals, and it is important that we confront that sentiment.”

Swinney added: “Many of the people who are participating in these protests against the asylum seeker hotels are people who are spreading racist hate in our country.

“So yes, there are people in there who are doing exactly that, and that’s why that’s got to be confronted, and why people in Scotland can rely on their First Minister to do exactly that.”

Commenting on the plans for Cameron Barracks, Scottish Conservative Highlands and Islands MSP Edward Mountain, said: “This delay is nothing more than a ploy by the UK Government in the hope people come round to their flawed idea of housing asylum seekers at Cameron Barracks.

Angus MacDonald, Liberal Democrat MP for Inverness, Skye and West Ross-shire, said: “Irrespective of how long this delay lasts, Cameron Barracks is not an appropriate location to house such a large number of asylum seekers.

“It is the wrong solution in the wrong place.”

UK Government ministers have been looking at ways of clamping down on the use of asylum seeker hotels.

A Home Office spokesperson said on Friday: “We are furious at the level of illegal migrants and asylum hotels.

“Moving to large military sites is an important part of our reforms to tackle illegal migration and the pull factors that make the UK an attractive destination.

“We are continuing to accelerate plans to move people into Crowborough and Cameron Barracks, when the sites are fully operational and safe.

“We will not replicate the mistakes of the past where rushed plans have led to unsafe and chaotic situations that impacts the local community.”

The Home Office did not wish to make further comment on Saturday.