Prime Minister Andy Burnham has said more affluent areas of Britain will also have to house asylum seekers, following the arrival of more than 900 migrants in small boats over the last three days.
Record arrivals and local concerns
Home Office figures show that 911 people made the crossing from France in the last three days, including 230 in a single boat on Monday. Since Mr Burnham became Prime Minister 22 days ago, a total of 3,003 migrants have arrived across the English Channel.
Mr Burnham was speaking on Tuesday after protests at a migrant camp being set up near Piddington, a village near Bicester, which locals fear could overwhelm the hamlet.
PM's response to Piddington concerns
Mr Burnham said: “I will listen to what people are saying and respond to the concerns that they are putting forward.” He added: “I don’t know the issue yet in detail, but in some ways, as I understand it, it is about creating secure space.”
He continued: “It’s obviously going to be challenging, but I am prepared always to listen to people, to work with people, and to pick up legitimate concerns, and I will address those concerns. I do have to say, we cannot have a situation where it’s only the poorest communities in the country that receive all of the dispersal of refugees and asylum seekers. I do believe all parts of the country need to work, to play their part.”
He said: “We understand people’s concerns and I will look into the issues raised by the good people of Piddington.”
Political reaction and government plans
Shadow home secretary Chris Philp responded to the record 230-person boat, saying: “This is now beyond a joke. The French authorities could easily have stopped a vessel this size from embarking in shallow waters. It’s a disgrace. Out of touch Andy Burnham claims there is no problem. There clearly is.”
Piddington, a village of about 400 people, has voted to hold a symbolic referendum on leaving the UK after the Government announced plans to house asylum seekers at a nearby Ministry of Defence (MoD) site. Under Home Office plans, MoD Bicester could be converted to accommodate up to 1,250 male asylum seekers.
Mr Burnham insisted the Government “will keep going at this issue” until small boat crossings are stopped, but did not commit to a timeline. He told GB News: “Well, the deal that we put in place, the payment-by-results deal, has created a change – there is more law enforcement on the other side of the Channel in summer 2026 than there was last summer and that has led to quite a reduction in the number of crossings. But that’s not good enough. People will say to me, ‘we don’t want any crossings’. I understand that concern. There are further things that we are doing and we will keep going at this issue until we deliver that eradication that people are looking for.”
Asked whether he could promise “no more small boats crossings by the election”, Mr Burnham replied: “It would be wrong, I think, for me to make a prediction now based on a timeline.” He added: “I’d rather promise to people what I know I can do and what I know I can deliver, and that is a relentless focus on this issue to deal with the public concern. I heard it on doorstep, on doorstep after doorstep in Makerfield, and I said to the people there, and I say it to the country, ‘I hear what you say, I will be completely focused on the issue’. There are more measures that we’re bringing through but crossings are down, immigration is down – there is real progress to report.”
