PLANS by the previous Tory government to house asylum-seekers at a former RAF base in Lincolnshire were scrapped by the Home Office today.

Home Office Minister Dame Angela Eagle said the plans for RAF Scampton had already cost £60 million and did not represent value for money.

In a written ministerial statement, she said that running the site from now until March 2027 would cost a further £122m, taking the total to near £200m.

“This is an unacceptable cost. It is now better value for money to exit the site,” she said.

“We have also listened to community feedback and concerns about using this site for asylum accommodation.”

The government will close the site immediately and sell it in line with an established process for disposing of crown land.

This comes after the new Labour government scrapped the Rwanda plan.

The former airbase was at the heart of a plan by the previous Conservative government to accommodate migrants who arrive in Britain using small boats and other unauthorised means.