Story perspectives

Home Office Denies 3,000-Migrant Claim for Bicester Plan

9/10/2026

Summary

Miller Declares Win

MP Calum Miller called the Bicester MOD asylum-seeker consultation a democracy win.
Residents can submit objections until 17 September.
The plan would house up to 1,256 men.
The Home Office said claims the site would hold over 3,000 migrants are untrue and outdated.
Planning papers show a study examined housing up to 3,510 migrants.

Summary

Police Investigate

Thames Valley Police are investigating the September 5 protest altercation captured on video.
Video shows a driver tackled, placed in a chokehold, and subjected to racist insults.
Ian McKendrick, vice-chair of Oxfordshire Stand Up To Racism, called it a racist attack.
Protest organiser Paula Ewers said the driver acted aggressively but denied protesters hit the car.
MP Calum Miller said he contacted police to register deep concerns about the violence.

History

Historical Context

In November 1993 the Home Office opened Campsfield House near Oxford despite parish-council opposition, sparking monthly protests for 25 years. A 2015 expansion plan was withdrawn after MP Nicola Blackwood’s opposition, but a 2022 proposal to reopen the site revived the Coalition to Keep Campsfield Closed. The centre’s history includes a 2007 escape of 26 detainees and a 2023 petition with over 1,000 signatures.

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Miller Declares Win

MP Calum Miller called the Bicester MOD asylum-seeker consultation a democracy win.
Residents can submit objections until 17 September.
The plan would house up to 1,256 men.
The Home Office said claims the site would hold over 3,000 migrants are untrue and outdated.
Planning papers show a study examined housing up to 3,510 migrants.

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