Taxpayers May Face Over £270 million Bill for Yorkshire Asylum Facility
Campaigners warn that converting the former RAF base at Linton-on-Ouse into an asylum centre could cost the public more than £270 million over a roughly two-year operation.
A proposal to house up to 1,200 asylum seekers at the former RAF Linton-on-Ouse base has prompted Linton Action to produce a cost estimate of £270.9 million, assuming the centre would operate for about 23 months before the Ministry of Defence re-takes the property. The figure, derived from the group's own modelling, translates to between £443 and £853 per occupied bed per night, far above the £144.98 hotel benchmark. Campaigners cite decommissioning, utility upgrades, security, transport and health services as major expense drivers.
They reference the National Audit Office’s 2024 review, which found earlier large-site programmes to be £46 million costlier than hotels and noted £2.9 million wasted on the abandoned 2022 proposal. The Home Office maintains the plan will reduce reliance on hotels, while local officials say no government contact has been made since the plan’s revival.
Why it matters
It highlights a potentially huge taxpayer burden for a short-term asylum accommodation scheme.
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