Responding to the news that the Government paid more than double the recent value for Northeye former prison site in order to house asylum seekers there, Cllr Christine Bayliss, Labour Group Leader on Rother District Council, said:

“This shocking waste of money is yet another example of the Tory chaos at our borders and in the asylum system which has cost taxpayers billions.

Labour has a serious plan to end the government’s wasteful spending, stop the criminal smuggling gangs, clear the hotel backlog and take back control of our asylum system.

If the government has £15.3m to spend in Rother, we would rather they spend it helping local residents get through the cost of living crisis, instead of wasting it by overpaying for land and lining the pockets of private developers“.