Suella Braverman wins legal battle over ‘emergency’ asylum camp at Essex military base

‘There is a qualifying emergency here,’ judge says - but grants permission for appeal

(AFP via Getty Images)

Suella Braverman has won the first stage of a legal battle over plans to turn a former military base into a camp housing 1,700 asylum seekers.

The home secretary declared the current shortage of asylum accommodation an “emergency” to bypass normal planning permission, and development has been started at former RAF Wethersfield without local consultation.

Braintree District Council applied for an injunction to stop the scheme and force the government to apply for planning permission in the normal way but on Friday, a judge ruled that the High Court did not have jurisdiction to decide the case.