The Conservative Group at Suffolk County Council has expressed concern about the new Reform administration’s motion to spend a reported £1 million plus on a county-wide referendum on asylum accommodation.
The proposed referendum would be non-binding and would not determine the Government’s decision on proposed asylum accommodation sites, including RAF Barnham.
Conservatives have questioned whether spending a potential £1 million plus on a county-wide referendum represents value for money for Suffolk taxpayers, particularly at a time when the council is facing significant financial pressures and is already projecting a £7.8 million overspend.
While the Conservative Group continues to oppose the use of RAF Barnham and support the concerns raised by residents and Barnham Parish Council, any decision to spend significant sums of public money on a county-wide referendum should be fully justified.
Councillor Richard Rout, Leader of the Conservative Group at Suffolk County Council, said:
“We have always maintained that RAF Barnham is completely the wrong location to house thousands of single male asylum seekers. The community in Barnham, the Parish Council and local councillors have worked tirelessly to ensure local views are represented, and we stand fully behind them.
“While a Parish Poll in Barnham itself would be entirely appropriate, a county-wide referendum, which is not binding and could cost more than £1 million to run, is a completely different matter. Furthermore, holding a referendum across all of Suffolk at the same time as the local elections would deeply politicise the issue, which we know many local residents in Barnham do not want to see.
“At this stage, we don’t even know the question that Reform wants to ask the public. It’s unclear whether a county-wide referendum is something the local community in Barnham wants to see, and we’ve yet to see a precise cost. All of this looks like an attempt to use public money to motivate their voting base rather than find a solution for Suffolk and Barnham.
“The financial situation Suffolk County Council is facing is precarious and to spend over £1 million on a non-binding referendum that the government could simply ignore must be called into question. There are better ways to support local residents, and any future steps must have the support of local residents in Barnham.”
Suffolk Conservative Group is calling for greater clarity from the Reform administration on the cost, wording, legal effect and purpose of the proposed referendum before public money is committed.
