Northeye Protestors Blame Merriman and Tory Government
HUGH SULLIVAN
A meeting of Bexhill-on-Sea Town Council resolved last Wednesday to oppose the use of the former prison site at Northeye to house asylum seekers. The full Town Council resolution, on a motion brought by Independent councillor Claire Baldry, was “to oppose the use of the Northeye ex-military training site to house 1200 male asylum seekers”.
Three days later, around 150 local residents gathered at the Wheatsheaf pub in Little Common under the slogan “No to Northeye” and marched through Collington to Bexhill Town Hall with banners demanding the removal of “illegal migrants” – but also of the Tory government which was failing to control migration.
It was, according to organiser of the march, another Independent town councillor Nigel Jacklin, the sixth “peaceful gathering” in Bexhill since the announcement of the government’s proposal by Immigration Minister Robert Jenrick, and the third organised by No To Northeye – there had been one outside the De La Warr Pavilion for a recent BBC Question Time recording; this was the second of two Saturday protest marches.
About 150 people of all ages, but mainly over 50s, marched from the Wheatsheaf, accompanied by whistles, chants and horns of passing cars which were taken as appreciative. Another 50 or so joined the group at the Town Hall.
There will be another protest march on Saturday July 1.
Lack of consultation.
Mr Jacklin says he regards the Northeye proposal as a “complete failure of the democratic process”. Specifically, he and members of the No To Northeye campaign group argue that the fact that the Home Office are proposing to use the site for the purpose of housing asylum seekers without local consultation or due process is wrong.
He told Saturday’s gathering: “We hold the government to blame. They are using emergency legislation – but there shouldn’t be an emergency.
“We are not anti-immigrant. We are against uncontrolled migration. Neither Northeye nor anywhere else should be used in the way they propose. If the government and the Home Office were to do their jobs and stop people trafficking across the channel and process asylum claims in good time, there would be no need for large scale accommodation centres here or anywhere else.”
Many marchers complained at the failure nationally to control overall numbers of migrants coming in, but also at the choice of site for those arrived. “Maybe if they accommodated families at Northeye it wouldn’t be so scary,” one said. “But to put 1,200 unattached males, mostly 18 to 30, on a site half a mile from the centre of Little Common, which has a population of around 4,600, is asking for trouble. There’s already a lack of policing here, a lack of GP and other facilities: that’s bad enough. We should be looking after our own first.”
Huw Merriman MP
General discontent was expressed at the lack of support given to the objectors by local MP for Bexhill and Battle, Huw Merriman. Mr Jacklin later released a copy of a letter he had sent to the MP: “I am writing to express my strong objection to the plans to use the Northeye site as an asylum seeker accommodation centre. You have failed to represent your constituents on this matter and, with this in mind, I will not vote for you at the next election, nor will I vote for anyone who supports the use of the site for this purpose.”
However, as Minister for Rail and HS2 since October last year, Mr Merriman presumably feels constrained not to oppose Home Office policies. In a statement issued on his own website, the MP insists that the decision to select this site was made by the Home Office. “I was only told about the decision three days before the proposal was announced on 29 March. It has been suggested that I recommended this site to the Home Office. I most certainly did not. Last year, following queries by constituents, I asked the then immigration minister if the site was being considered. I was told it was not. I gave my views on the site, and the proximity to the town, at that time.
“Following the announcement of the proposal, at my request, the Home Office committed to working closely with me and the wider community. Since then, I have had meetings and regular discussions with the minister, convened and chaired a meeting between the Home Office officials leading on the proposals and the leaders of our statutory local service providers, and met, and continue to have discussions with, local residents about the challenges of the proposal.”
The Home Office, for its part, has issued responses to written questions raised by Mr Merriman.
In answer to a question on the number of people to be housed at Northeye, the response is that: “If a decision is made to progress using the site for non-detained asylum accommodation, we will undertake works at the site and only after the site is legally compliant and ready for use would we start to accommodate asylum seekers. We would increase capacity in phases over several months to reach an operating capacity of c.1,200 people, regularly reviewing the numbers and use of the site.”
As to interaction with the local community, there is this response: “By designing the site to be as self-sufficient as possible, we would minimise the impact on local communities and services. Proposals include providing onsite recreational and cultural activities to occupy residents. As proposals develop, we continue to work closely with local political leaders and their officials and other local partners to manage any impact on the local area.”
Mr Merriman has held the Parliamentary seat for the Conservative party since 2015. At the 2019 election his majority over his nearest challenger (Christine Bayliss of Labour) was over 26,000.
A Different perspective
The Refugee Buddy Project (RBP: see the supplement in this issue of HIP) states its principal aim as the provision of “a positive experience of welcome for people seeking refuge in Hastings and the surrounding areas”. Its CEO, Rossana Leal, has written to Huw Merriman MP protesting at the Northeye proposal.
“People seeking refuge deserve to be treated with dignity and respect, and to be housed in community accommodation where they can live alongside their neighbours. Isolating and segregating people in this type of camp amounts to the internment of large numbers of innocent people. The UK is better than this. Bexhill is better than this.
“We are asking you, as the local MP for this area, to call on the Home Office to:
Immediately scrap its plans for accommodation centres in Northeye and across of the UK.
Redouble its efforts to increase the availability of safe asylum accommodation in flats and houses within local communities.
Work collaboratively with communities and local authorities and provide adequate funding to enable them to welcome people seeking safety.”
Despite shared antipathy to the government’s proposal, there has not been any known discussion between representatives of the RBP and of the No to Northeye group. The former are unlikely to be willing to share a political platform with people carrying banners demanding the deportation of illegal migrants.
We hope you have enjoyed reading this article. The future of our volunteer led, non-profit publication would be far more secure with the aid of a small donation. You can also support local journalism by becoming a friend of HIP. It only takes a minute and we would be very grateful.
An excellent article providing a balanced view of the situation that we in Bexhill are facing. Thank you No To Northeye and Nigel Jacklin for all your hard work…Keep it Up. Your facebook page provides details of lots of events if there are any punters interested…No To Northeye, also notonortheye.org.
Many thanks for coming on Saturday and for a great write up. Rother District Council (which includes Bexhill) have now joined in with West Lindsey (Scampton) and Braintree (Weathersfield) in the related legal action. This is good news. There was a preliminary hearing on Monday. We are awaiting a decision from that as well as further information and a decision from the Home Office. The lack of information from the Home Office is disarming giving the use of new and unprecedented emergency legislation to impose the camp on us. The site is around 600 metres away from Pevensey Levels (SSSI and RAMSAR). Rother put detailed considerations on the site in the Development Plan. If this is rushed through the Levels will also be at risk. Somehow it feels as if they won’t get 800 men accommodated there in September.