Home Office Meeting Notes

Home Office Comms Group Meeting – 7th September 2023 @ 3pm

• HO advised the group that 4 engagement meetings had taken place at the Lincolnshire Showground and that they had gone quite well with no security issues.  There was a police presence of 1 sergeant and a further 6 officers.
• HO are looking for more dates in the next few weeks for extra meetings to include a wider catchment area.  This would probably be virtual but with the plan to engage in more face to face meetings with vulnerable people and parents of Pollyplatt children.
• LCC encouraged that these meetings should also be open to business in the local area as well as the City Centre as they will also be impacted.
• HO agreed and took these comments on board.
• WLDC reported that despite what the HO had indicated, the meetings did not start smoothly and that 2 security was wholly not enough.  WLDC were unsure why the press were not allowed to attend the event which it lead to a large press presence at the entrance and it was left to WLDC to try and field their questions. No one left the event feeling re-assured and there are still an enormous amount of unanswered questions and more worry with regards to the Service Users now being officially classed as illegal. It was noted by many that there is going to be a huge drain on an already stretched NHS if the onsite triage is not successful. Many more people need to be include in the next meetings and that the HO need to get the correct information before these events as many inaccurate messages were sent out over all 4 meetings.
• The HO responded by advising that press lines had been released on the day and that a proactive statement had also been released to the local press. The HO felt that the seats available should be for residents and not press. The HO also advised that they would try and get some of the local police on the panel next time.
• LCC commented that there was ample space at the back of the room for the press to stand without affecting the meeting.
• SPC advised the group that the message from the residents following these meetings was very negative. Many residents reporting that they could not get a ticket despite there being many empty seat on the day. Nothing has been disseminated to the residents since the meetings had taken place. The meetings were requested by the HO not to be recorded and yet they themselves recorded them all. The HO were unable to show any reassurances to any of the questions asked.
• WLDC commented that any press releases must be shared to the group before they issued so that they are aware what is being published and are ready to respond to the backlash that they always receive.
• The HO advised that they would try and get an email address to forward the press release to.
• LCC commented that it was disappointing that despite the concerns being raised in this and many groups since March, the HO were unable to give any reassurance.
• Ho advised that they would be updating the factsheet based on the questions raised ASAP.
• WLDC asked the question what does ‘rapid roundup’ involve as it is a statement that is being used a lot lately and how will it work?
• HO advised that the Ministerial Ambition is for 2000 service users to be in place by the end of 2023.  This will be a phased approach but will be challenging.  The plan is to start with 50, iron out any issues and then quickly ramp up the intake to get them all in by the end of the year.
• WLDC requested that the timetable for this need disseminating quickly to which the HO agreed.
• The HO advised that following an action to create a separate page for RAF Scampton they have looked into this and are unable to assist any further. The .gov.uk site team do not want multiple different pages.  However, they may be able to add a ‘section’ on the current page just for RAF Scampton.
• The HO reported that they were struggling to get a list of VCS and establish what support they are willing to give.
• VCS asked what are the HO wanting them to provide? They have a huge amount of volunteers offering lots of different services but they are unsure what the HO is looking for.
• SPC commented that there was no support whatsoever to the local residents and yet there was an abundance being offered to the Service Users.
• The HO advised that a Community Impact Assessment was in place and that they would take an action to look at this and work with SPC.
• SPC asked if the Impact Assessment could be viewed. The HO replied with some of it could be shared but not all.
• SPC advised the group that it has no confidence for the safety off the site and want to prevent an incident happening before it does. 2000 males suddenly being told once they have been sent to RAF Scampton that they don’t qualify for asylum will lead to considerable unrest within the Service User community.
• The HO advised that they could not be detained or pre-arrest them as they have not yet done anything wrong.
• SPC responded with the fact that they are illegal.
• The HO replied that that they were working with the local police and that bio-metric tests were in place to screen and monitor them.
• SPC made a comment that the organised crime route will very quickly look attractive to them.