Kemi Badenoch has sparked fresh controversy after suggesting that asylum seekers could be housed in “camps” rather than hotels, a proposal immediately branded “deeply troubling” by refugee campaigners.
While meeting residents in Epping, Essex, the Conservative leader urged a rethink on outdated immigration approaches.
“We’ve got to turn things around very quickly. We cannot use rules from 1995, or 2005, or even 2015 for 2025. Our world is changing very quickly, and we need to adapt to it,” she told the gathering.
In a move seemingly aimed at reassuring voters concerned about migration, Ms Badenoch asked: “Is it possible for us to set up camps and police that, rather than bringing all of this hassle into communities?
“As a party, we also need to hear from the community about what you think the solutions are. We don’t have all the answers; it’s important that we make sure that the community is part of the problem solved.”
Her remarks come as the Conservatives face mounting pressure from Reform UK on immigration policy, with tempers flaring over the use of hotels to accommodate asylum seekers.
The suggestion triggered a sharp response from Refugee Action’s Tim Naor Hilton. “It’s deeply troubling that our political leaders appear to be in a race to the bottom for who can treat people seeking asylum the most cruelly.
“It is creating an incendiary atmosphere in our communities that is emboldening dangerous far-right groups and leading to racist attacks on people seeking asylum.
“Hostile policies and rhetoric must stop now. People must be treated with dignity and housed properly in our communities so they can rebuild their lives in peace.”
Protests have erupted nationwide in recent weeks over the placement of asylum seekers in hotels. Meanwhile, ministers have ramped up measures to curb migration, unveiling a “one in, one out” returns deal with France and expanding the “deport now, appeal later” scheme.
This scheme, now covering offenders from 23 countries including India, Bulgaria, and Australia, permits the UK to remove foreign nationals whose human rights claims have been rejected, with appeals heard remotely.
Ms Badenoch remained sceptical of the government’s new push, stating: “When we were deporting criminals, Keir Starmer was writing letters trying to stop our deportations, so I’ll believe it when I see it.
“This is the sort of stuff that they should have been doing on day one. The fact that they tried to stop deportations before means that I don’t really believe it.
“The government has released 26,000 prisoners since they came to power, released them early, [and] there are now more criminals on our streets, that’s what I’m really worried about.”
With migration now one of the most combustible issues in British politics, Badenoch’s remarks are likely to deepen the divide, both within Westminster and across the country.
