In Sussex Weald, we are good people. We have always been welcoming to people who were in need of help and a temporary home. To name just a couple of the most recent examples, in 2022, we have led the way in providing support to Ukrainian families fleeing the war, welcoming the most arrivals to East Sussex. In 2024, we offered temporary accommodation for Afghans who provided support to Britain and were on the Taliban’s hit list. As your local MP, I was involved in both cases, making representations to Ministers, securing faster visas, and coordinating community support.
However, it is important that we stay true to who we are and that we challenge decisions that are not right for our communities and that do not work for us.
Like many Sussex Weald residents, I was furious to read from the media on Tuesday 28th October that this Labour Government's Home Office and Ministry of Defence have been in private conversations with the Green Party & Liberal Democrat Leadership at Wealden District Council to potentially use the Crowborough Training Camp to house asylum seekers in the near future.
Under the previous Conservative Government, the Crowborough site was rejected outright. This was due to its layout and the difficulty in it being adapted and the extra costs that would be involved. Furthermore, modifying the site would put it in conflict with the local Council’s Crowborough National Landscape and planning policy.
You will have seen that as soon as the story broke, I stood up for Crowborough and put pressure on the Home Office and the Wealden District Council to explain what plans are in process.
Timeline of my actions (from newest):
Wednesday 17th December 2025
👉🏽 Statement following Home Office's confirmation of delay to using Crowborough Training Camp to house asylum seekers. Read it here.
👉🏽 Video Update with neighbouring MP, Mims Davies MP who has helped us secure a win over the Home Office delay on Asylum Seekers. Watch it here.
Friday 12th December 2025
👉🏽 I joined the Crowborough Shield team at the Crowborough Training Camp to congratulate them on the legal action they have taken against the Home Office. With Wealden District Council missing in action we have seen our community come together to stand up for local residents. Watch our latest update here.
Wednesday 10th December 2025
👉🏽 Read my letter to Home Office Minister Alex Norris MP. Read it here.
👉🏽 I joined GB News to give an update following Crowborough Shield launching legal action against the Home Office. Watch my interview here.
Tuesday 9th December 2025
👉🏽 Watch my update on points raised in the letter Defence Minister, Luke Pollard on Friday 5th December. Watch it here.
Friday 5th December 2025
👉🏽 Response received from Defence Minister Luke Pollard MP. The letter can be read in full here.
👉🏽 I joined Danny Pike at BBC Sussex this morning to discuss Crowborough Cadets on the day their activity at the Training Camp stopped to accommodate the Home Office. Listen back here.
Wednesday 3rd December 2025
👉🏽 Watch my update on the outcomes following my meeting with Defence Minister, Luke Pollard on Monday 1st December. Watch it here.
Tuesday 2nd December 2025
👉🏽 I joined Danny Pike at BBC Sussex this morning to share a update on her meeting with the Defence Minister. Listen back here.
👉🏽 Result! MoD writes to Crowborough Cadets' parents following pressure from me and local community at meeting with Defence Minister. Read my statement here.
Monday 1st December 2025
👉🏽 I secured a meeting with Defence Minister Luke Pollard MP to urgently discuss provision for Crowborough Cadets. My statement following the meeting is available here.
Friday 21st November 2025
👉🏽 I joined Peter Suter for a special update on the Crowborough Training Camp, follwoing my recent meeting with Home Office Minister Alex Norris MP. The interview is available in full here.
Thursday 20th November 2025
👉🏽 I joined Danny Pike at BBC Sussex this morning to share a update on her meeting with the Home Office Minister. Listen back here.
Wednesday 19th November 2025
👉🏽 I secured a meeting with Home Office Minister Alex Norris regarding the Government’s proposals to house asylum seekers at Crowborough Training Camp. A video update is available here.
👉🏽 Statement following my meeting to the Minister is available here.
👉🏽 Our most recent joint letter to the leadership of Wealden District Council sent alongside Mims Davies MP and Dr Kieran Mullan MP is available here.
Friday 14th November 2025
👉🏽 I joined Nick Ferrari to discuss the plans to house asylum seekers at the Crowborough Training Camp. The interview is available here.
Thursday 13th November 2025
👉🏽 I attended the public meeting organised by Wealden District Council on Thursday 13th November. You can watch my Youtube update here.
Monday 10th November 2025
👉🏽 I stepped in to convene two large community meetings, with over 500 residents attending to hear directly from Home Office officials. The Home Office confirmed that the Wealden District Council, as the lead planning authority and recipient of money for every asylum seeker accommodated at Crowborough, has the power to legally challenge the decision before, during, and after asylum seekers arriving. At this meeting, as a result of the pressure from myself and the community, the Council’s leadership (Cllr Rachel Millward and Cllr James Partridge) changed their initial position of “nothing could be done” to “we will take legal action”. They now need to be true to their word and deliver what they promised to the community. There is no time to waste, and every Councillor now needs to be across the detail and standing up for Crowborough.
👉🏽 My statement ahead of the meeting is here.
👉🏽 My statement following the meeting is here.
Wednesday 5th November 2025
👉🏽 My letter to Defence Minister Luke Pollard is available here.
👉🏽 You can watch our video update alongside Mims Davies MP on YouTube here.
Tuesday 4th November 2025
👉🏽 My letter to Home Office officials is available here.
Monday 3rd November 2025
👉🏽 My letter to Home Office Minister, Alex Norris MP is available here.
👉🏽 I joined Peter Suter on Ashdown Radio for an update on Crowborough Training Camp and an update on the Crowborough Birthing Centre. Listen back here.
Friday 31st October 2025
👉🏽 You can watch my first video update on YouTube here.
29 October 2025
👉🏽 My letter to the Leadership of Wealden District Council is available here.
28 October 2025
👉🏽 My first statement once the news broke regarding the planned use for the camp. Available here.
👉🏽 My letter to the Home Secretary is available here.
I will support the Council in taking legal action, but I do not support their position of working with the Home Office in housing asylum seekers at Crowborough Training Camp. I look forward to seeing evidence of what legal action and legal advice will be implemented.
✍🏽 My petition is still open. If you think Crowborough deserves better, please sign it here: https://www.nusghani.org.uk/NoAsylumHousing.
