Five arrested after former barracks housing asylum claimants burned and trashed

Five men have been arrested after a fire at a military barracks where asylum claimants are being held.

Kent Police said one man was held on suspicion of assaulting a security guard and four in connection with the fire at Napier Barracks on Friday.

The Home Office had said a disturbance followed objections by asylum seekers to not being moved from the Folkestone site after a Covid outbreak.

On Saturday, the government said the barracks remained “calm”.

Det Ch Supt Andrew Pritchard said the five men were in custody and the force was working with the Home Office and fire service to “establish the full circumstances and identify any individuals involved”.

He said a team of officers remained at the scene as part of continuing inquiries.

Meanwhile, Folkestone’s council leader David Monk said about 300 asylum seekers were still at the barracks and called for them to be moved to hotels.

“One building has been virtually destroyed, but there is no intention to remove the people from the site,” he said.

He said he never believed it was sensible to put a large group of young men in one place, adding: “It is not a surprise to me that tensions have eventually overridden common sense.”

Home Secretary Priti Patel described the destruction as “deeply offensive to the taxpayers of this country”.

A spokesperson for the Home Office said: “There are no plans to move any asylum seekers from the site and we are accommodating them all safely in the parts of the site that have not been damaged.

“To provide additional physical support and reassurance to staff and asylum seekers located at Napier barracks, immigration enforcement deployed members of its rapid response team overnight and will continue to attend the site over the weekend.”