by Bethany Rielly

News Reporter

THE Home Office has moved only four asylum-seekers from an ex-army camp in Wales this week despite promises to transfer everyone from the site, a former resident has claimed. 

Asylum-seekers at Penally Camp in Pembrokeshire have spoken out against the Home Office over the slow transfer of residents.

Earlier this month, Immigration Minister Chris Philp announced that all residents at Penally would be moved following calls to shut the site down over “inhumane” living conditions. 

But asylum-seeker Kenan, who was held at the former army barracks last year, said this information was “misleading.” 

He said: “Last week they moved four residents, and this week another four.

“At the current rate it will take a year for the camp to close.”

Speaking at a press conference hosted by West Wales Stand Up to Racism on Thursday evening, Kenan said the residents fear that they will be moved to new camps currently being constructed by the Home Office.

“[The asylum-seekers] don’t know if they will be deported to other countries or moved to new camps,” he said. 

“The Home Office wants to make clear to everybody that the refugees are not welcome in the United Kingdom at all — that if you come here you will stay in a camp.” 

The government is building two new camps — one next to Yarl’s Wood detention centre and another in Barton Stacey, Hampshire — designed to hold asylum-seekers while they wait for their claims.

The press conference, which also heard from local campaigners, was called to demand that the Home Office shut down Penally Camp, where around 250 men have been held since September. 

As well as criticising the rate of removal, another former resident of the camp said vulnerable people had still not been transferred. 

“We already received confirmation from the Home Office that certain people are vulnerable and need to be relocated, however, until now, they are not being moved,” he said. 

“They need to be released. We are not asking to be accommodated in fancy houses or beside the beach, we are just asking for a private room because of Covid-19.” 

Immigration compliance minister Mr Philp insisted that asylum seekers in Penally are staying "in safe, suitable, Covid-compliant accommodation where they receive three nutritious meals a day.

“People are routinely moved between asylum accommodation venues from time to time for a variety of reasons."

Residents of the barracks spoke out about the poor conditions.

“We stayed in the camp for two weeks — with broken toilets, cold showers and poor food hygiene,” a resident, who spoke anonymously, said.

They said the problems were only fixed recently after the Home Office ordered an independent inspection of the use of hotels and army barracks as temporary housing for asylum-seekers earlier this week. 

Campaigners supporting men in the barracks said there was an urgent need to transfer them out of the barracks due to declining mental health. 

Local resident Hellana Hetfield said: “Lots of men are suffering and … lots of them have given up.

“In the beginning some of them were chirpy and cheerful but now you see they have been drained of their emotions.”  

Jennifer Blair, head of legal at refugee support group the Helen Bamber Foundation, said that everyone assessed by the charity had “experienced a deterioration in their mental health and wellbeing since they were moved into the camps.”