Housing migrants at RAF camp may cost more than hotels, ministers told

RAF Wethersfield in Essex may not provide value for money, according to Home Office documents – PA Images / Alamy Stock Photo/Alamy

Housing migrants in an RAF camp may cost more than hotels, ministers were warned in internal memos.

Senior officials said there was a “significant” risk that the plan to turn the former RAF base at Wethersfield, near Braintree in Essex, into a camp for asylum seekers would not provide “value for money,” according to Home Office documents.

They estimated that the cost per migrant per night at the Wethersfield site was between £133 and £167, compared with the hotel rate for housing migrants of £142.

This calculation was, however, based on “high level initial estimates for occupancy in the first year”. So far, only around 600 migrants have been moved on to the camp, which officials proposed should have a capacity of 1,700 asylum seekers with an 85 per cent occupancy rate at any one time.

A large banner saying: ‘Stop The Asylum Centre’ in fields near the former air base on April 1 – Martin Pope/Getty

The doubts about its value for money were revealed in documents released as part of a judicial review of the plans by local councils that oppose them. James Cleverly, the Home Secretary, is the local MP for Wethersfield and has previously criticised it as an unsuitable site due to the lack of road infrastructure and its remoteness.

Wethersfield is one of three mass accommodation sites for migrants aimed at reducing the £8 million a day cost of housing asylum seekers in hotels. The other two are RAF Scampton in Lincolnshire, which has yet to open, and the Bibby Stockholm barge in Portland, Dorset.

The documents make clear that the argument for ensuring they offered value for money – by reducing the reliance on and cost of hotels – is dependent on the sites operating over a three-to-five year period.

One warns that reduced hotel usage over that period could undermine the argument. “There is a risk to VfM [value for money] if initiatives to exit hotels mean hotel use runs for significantly less than the five-year period,” said officials.

The Home Office has started to reduce the number of hotels, with 50 of the 400 currently in use closed by the end of January, and a further 50 due to shut by the spring. The backlog of asylum seekers has also been cut to below 100,000 from 140,000, reducing the pressure on accommodation.

The gate at Wethersfield, a former RAF base – David Rose for the Telegraph/David Rose for the Telegraph

On 24 March last year, days before the Government announced its plan to use ex-military sites, one Home Office memo on Wethersfield said: “The Accounting Officer will need to accept that there is a risk the site could not meet VfM [value for money]”.

The memo, written for a senior official and described as “final” advice, said: “I would advise ministers that the value for money case is marginal and the risks to delivery are significant.”

A Home Office spokesman maintained the cost estimates were “significantly overestimated, outdated and pre-contractual.”

Although the Home Office declined to say whether it was offering value for money, the spokesman said: “Delivering accommodation on surplus military sites provides more orderly, suitable accommodation for those arriving in small boats while reducing the use of hotels which cost more than £8 million a day.”

The documents also revealed that officials admitted there would be concerns over the location, as Wethersfield had “limited road access with only B roads providing access to the site and the surrounding villages already acting as significant traffic choke points.

“We are assuming this will increase the local opposition and potentially increase legal challenges,” they said.

%n

Discover Telegraph Wine Cellar’s new wine club. Enjoy expertly chosen bottles at exclusive member prices. Plus, free delivery on every order.