Kent to Turn Away Lone Child Migrants From Monday Due to “Extreme Pressure”
Source: BBC News
Kent County Council says it will not be taking on any unaccompanied asylum-seeking children from Monday as it has reached “the limit of safe capacity”.
The council has threatened legal action against the Home Secretary over the “extreme pressure” on its services. More than 400 such children are in the care of the council. The government’s recommended maximum number is 231.
Children arriving next week will be taken by Border Force to the Kent Intake Unit at Dover. They would usually then be passed on to KCC, but now they will now remain the responsibility of the Home Office, which will have to find places for them with other local authorities, KCC said.
Mr Gough said no further arrivals could be accepted until “sufficient transfers have been made outside of Kent bringing our numbers back to safe levels”. He said it was “a small problem for the nation to resolve but a huge and unreasonable responsibility for Kent”.
For the full story, click here: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-kent-57440907