More than 70 frontline support groups, human rights charities and racial justice organisations have called on the Government to pledge a total end to housing people seeking asylum in “unsafe and unsuitable” military barracks that have been compared to an “open prison”.
Our open letter to Home Secretary Yvette Cooper, covered by The Independent, demands the immediate closure of MDP Wethersfield, the Essex former airbase which has increased its capacity to house up to 800 people seeking asylum, despite a recent High Court ruling that vulnerable people were held unlawfully at the base, in conditions which did serious damage to their mental health.
With other controversial mass asylum accommodation, including the Bibby Stockholm barge, now closed, and a closure date announced for the RAF Napier Asylum Camp, the letter calls the continued use of Wethersfield “ever more indefensible”. It argues immediate closure of remaining camps and a commitment to scrap the policy of asylum camps entirely would prevent more vulnerable people being put at risk and more Government money being wasted on legal challenges and profits for private contactors.
Kamena Dorling, Director of Policy at Helen Bamber Foundation, said: “Since Wethersfield opened in July 2023, Helen Bamber Foundation clinicians have undertaken medical assessments of the men forced to live in the ex-military site. We have witnessed how harmful this has been to their mental and physical health – this continues to be the case and is only likely to get worse as more people are placed there.
“What makes Wethersfield wholly unsuitable is the site’s extreme isolation, the forced sharing of rooms, and difficulties in accessing essential services like healthcare and legal aid. This leaves many feeling trapped in what they describe as an ‘open prison’.
“The growing sense of desperation has led to rising tensions and an increased risk of violence. We have assessed men who have stopped eating or become too afraid to leave their rooms. Since the site opened, there has been a worrying rise in self-harm and suicide attempts among those held there.
“The government has made a commitment to get a grip on the asylum system and end the use of hotels. It is unclear then why it continues to waste taxpayers’ money and put lives at risk by keeping an inhumane site like Wethersfield open.”
Nathan Philips, Head of Campaigns at Asylum Matters, said: “This Government scrapped the floating prison that was Bibby Stockholm, it has announced the closure date for the Napier Barracks – it clearly understands that these expensive, isolating and dangerous sites benefit no one. They’re bad for people seeking sanctuary, they’re bad for the taxpayer, they’re bad for local communities. So it’s time for a full commitment to an end to the previous Government’s cruel and wasteful policy.
“Instead of piecemeal closures, the Government should give everyone confidence by promising to end the use of asylum camps for good. People deserve to live in communities, not camps.”
You can download the full letter here.
