North Wales MS and Shadow Social Justice Minister Mark Isherwood raised residents’ concerns over plans to house 400 single male asylum seekers in Northop in the Senedd Chamber yesterday.
Responding to the Statement by the Social Justice Minister and Chief Whip ‘Update on Wales: A Nation of Sanctuary’, Mr Isherwood quoted residents who are worried about the proposals, which are at the pre-application consultation stage.
He said:
“The BBC reported today that villagers in Northop Hall, Flintshire, will fight plans to house 400 single male asylum seekers in the former Northop Hall Country House Hotel, which is at pre-application consultation at stage. They state that ‘it was the wrong plan in the wrong place’. The Chair of Northop Hall Community Council stated: ‘400 single males will increase the total population of the village by 25 per cent. I can't believe there will not be a drain on community facilities which are already over extended. With only three bus services in the village each day, people would have nowhere to go’.
“And another resident stated: ‘They could be from the local town, they could be from Mold, it doesn't matter’.
“She was concerned about the impact on the mental health of hundreds of men living in close proximity with each other, unable to work and in an area where, quote, ‘there’s nothing here’.
“When my colleague Sam Rowlands and I wrote to the Home Office about this, the reply from the Minister of State for Immigration, Robert Jenrick, included that ‘The Home Office instructs our accommodation providers to ensure that all sites used to accommodate destitute asylum seekers must have appropriate planning in place before mobilisation’; that ‘the Asylum Accommodation and Support Services Contracts provider would also consider the location of the site in terms of access to local services and, if appropriate, seek to implement a transport solution’, and that ‘Finally, in relation to the provision for healthcare for those at the proposed site, the Home Office will continue to discuss how best to support the Welsh Government on their commitment within the Nation of Sanctuary Plan to ensure that asylum seekers can access health services throughout the asylum process’.
“And when we wrote to you about this, your reply included that you met Robert Jenrick on 30th March and then Local Authority Leaders the next day, to discuss Asylum accommodation and the impact of Asylum dispersal in Wales, and that you would ensure that the Welsh Government would help to facilitate engagement with Local Authorities. So, what specific engagement have you since had regarding proposals for Asylum accommodation in locations such as Northop Hall Country House Hotel? What alternative accommodation do you propose, and what action, if any, have you taken regarding previous proposals for new modular housing?”
In her response, the Minister said:
“Obviously, the proposal is at a pre-application planning stage, and this, indeed, has to go through the planning process. But I do take account of the views of the Welsh Refugee Council, particularly, and colleagues and Members around the Chamber will recognise the words that asylum seekers fleeing war and persecution must be treated with dignity and respect while their asylum claims are processed.”
Mr Isherwood, who sponsored and hosted the Sanctuary in the Senedd event in 2016, at which he stated “we've long provided a safe haven for victims of persecution, violence, ethnic cleansing and genocide from across the world, and long may that remain the case, because if we ever lose that, we'll have lost our humanity and true identity,” also asked the Minister to respond to emails he has received from constituents following the Welsh Government’s announcement of £20 million funding to provide young asylum seekers with £1,600 a month when they reach 18.
He said: “How do you respond to the Anglesey constituent, who e-mailed that ‘The Criminal Gangs operating the Channel boat business will have warned the immigrants to destroy their documents’, and to the Flintshire constituent, who e-mailed that, quote, he and his wife ‘are of pensionable age and receive less than £1,100 a month between us in state benefits, also known as pensions. So much for paying into the system over our working lives?’. Further, given that we are talking about Children, often traumatised and needing to feel safe and cared for, what specific provision is the Welsh Government making to meet these needs when they arrive in Wales’.”