The measure is part of a plan to clear hotels being used as shelters.

On Thursday, the British government sent 27 migrants to a former military camp in Crowborough, with a capacity for 500 people, designated for single men between the ages of 18 and 65.

RELATED:

UK to Deploy Forces to Ukraine in Case of Ceasefire

The camp has a ban on alcohol, controlled entry and exit, and no provision of phones or clothing, although charities can donate items. The Interior Ministry clarified that, to avoid local tensions, the migrants will not live in the adjacent town.

It added that the measure is temporary and part of a plan to clear hotels being used as shelters. In addition to Crowborough, the Defense Ministry offered a second camp in Inverness, Scotland, with a capacity for 300 people, both temporarily ceded.

In 2025, 41,472 migrants arrived in small boats via the English Channel, the second-highest figure since 2022, which has boosted the popularity of the anti-immigration party Reform UK, led by Nigel Farage. The crossings resulted in shipwrecks with at least 29 deaths last year.

When Keir Starmer came into office, he canceled Former Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s Rwanda plan, created an elite anti-trafficking unit, tightened immigration laws, and signed an agreement with France to exchange undocumented migrants for documented ones.

While his new Border Security, Asylum and Immigration Act establishes penalties of up to 14 years for those who supply boats, the measures have not stemmed arrivals or improved the government’s reputation.

The migrants come mainly from Eritrea, Afghanistan, Iran, Sudan, and Somalia. Three-quarters of them are men over 18, and 95% apply for asylum, which is granted in two-thirds of the cases.

teleSUR: JP

Source: EFE – RFI

IN THIS ARTICLE