Plans to accommodate asylum seekers at an Oxfordshire military base have prompted fresh questions over the government’s planning process after local leaders said the proposals were revealed without consultation.
The Home Office announced on Thursday 26 June that it intends to use three former Ministry of Defence sites to provide asylum accommodation, including MOD Bicester – Site A of Bicester Garrison, located between Piddington and Upper Arncott.
According to Calum Miller, MP for Bicester and Woodstock, the site could accommodate up to 1,250 people if the proposals proceed.
However, uncertainty remains over how the Home Office intends to secure the planning permission required to bring the plans forward. The department declined to comment when asked how it would obtain the necessary approvals.
The announcement has drawn criticism from Cherwell District Council Leader Lesley McLean, who said the council, residents and locally elected representatives had not been consulted before the decision was made public.
She also raised concerns about whether sufficient planning had been undertaken to ensure appropriate infrastructure, local services and safeguarding measures would be in place before the proposed opening later this year.
Ms McLean said: “This is another arbitrary decision from the Home Office, taken yet again, without any consultation with the council, residents or locally elected members.”
Her comments come as Cherwell District Council no longer determines some major planning applications locally after recent government planning reforms enabled certain proposals to be considered directly by the Planning Inspectorate.
Read more: Planning powers taken from Cherwell Council as government places council in special measures
Government departments also have the option of using the Crown planning route, allowing applications to bypass local planning authorities altogether.
Earlier this month, the Home Office submitted plans to more than double the capacity of the controversial Campsfield Immigration Removal Centre near Kidlington using the Crown planning process, sending the application directly to the government’s Planning Inspectorate rather than through Cherwell District Council.
At the time, Mr Miller said he was concerned the government could be using the process to avoid local scrutiny.
According to the MP, both he and Cherwell District Council were informed about the MOD Bicester proposals during the afternoon of 25 June, one day before the public announcement.
Ms McLean said the council would now be seeking “clarity, transparency and guarantees” from the government over how any impact on local communities and public services would be managed if the facility goes ahead.
She added: “The council will be asking the Home Office and other partner agencies including Oxfordshire County Council and Thames Valley Police to work with us to ensure that any provisions are suitable both for those staying there and those who live alongside.”
The Home Office did not answer specific questions about how it intends to obtain planning permission for the site.
In a statement, a Home Office spokesperson said the department had “engaged” with local authorities ahead of the announcement and stressed that “no final decisions to proceed will be taken until all necessary arrangements, assessments and approvals are in place and have been properly considered.”
The proposed accommodation forms part of the Government’s wider strategy to reduce the use of hotels for asylum seekers by converting former military sites.
Border Security and Asylum Minister Alex Norris said the move was helping bring the asylum system under greater control.
He said: “This is a system being brought back under control – and we will not stop until the job is done.”
