Reports suggest that the Penally camp housing asylum seekers is set to close soon.
The Home Office has apparently agreed that Penally will be given back to the Ministry of Defence by 21 March.
The housing of large numbers of asylum seekers in the former barracks proved doubly controversial. The men living there complained of unsafe and unhealthy conditions; and some local residents complained about having the asylum seekers “imposed” on their community.
It is not clear at this point where the asylum seekers remaining at Penally will move to.
Nigel Summerley retired from The Oldie magazine to return to freelance journalism. He previously held executive staff jobs at the London Evening Standard, The Daily Telegraph, The Sunday Telegraph and the Daily Express before freelancing for 20 years for newspapers including The Times, The Sunday Times, The Independent, The Guardian and the ‘i’ paper, plus a wide range of magazines. He continues to write about music, travel and health, to freelance for the Financial Times and The Oldie magazine, and to edit selected books. He blogs at www.nigel-summerley.blogspot.com.
