After being asked by Zarah Sultana MP about the poor conditions faced by asylum seekers at Napier Barracks in Kent, Patel told her to “listen to the facts” and claimed that the military bases being used to house asylum seekers were of a “very high standard” that is “in line with PHE (Public Health England) guidance”.

Facts

In June 2021, the High Court ruled that the “squalid” conditions in the Barracks were unlawful. Justice Lindon said that “the arrangements at the Barracks were contrary to the advice of PHE.”

A judgment in a case brought by six asylum seekers, who were all survivors of torture and/or human trafficking, found the Napier Barracks in Kent did not meet the “minimum standards” for accommodation.

Verdict

Priti Patel’s repulsive claim that conditions to house asylum seekers were of a “very high standard” and “in line with PHE guidance” was a lie, an ugly one at that. Her false statement remains on the House of Commons record in defiance of the Ministerial Code, in spite of the High Court judgment that the conditions were squalid and unlawful.