Home Office Spent £15 Million on Contaminated Asylum Accommodation: Spending Watchdog

The Home Office spent £15.4 million on purchasing a disused prison that was “ultimately deemed unfit” to convert into asylum accommodation because it was contaminated with asbestos, the independent public spending watchdog has said. The department had purchased HMP Northeye in Bexhill-on-Sea, East Sussex, last year, intending to convert it into accommodation for around 1,400 male illegal immigrants, through a mix of new buildings and refurbishments. The National Audit Office’s (NAO’s) report published on Friday determined that the department cut corners in the acquisition process, lacked in-house expertise to quality-assure decisions during the purchase, and paid more than it needed to for the property....