Suffolk village of Barnham set to follow in Piddington's footsteps with referendum to leave UK

Suffolk village of Barnham set to follow in Piddington's footsteps with referendum to leave UK Barnham residents have backed plans to hold a 'symbolic' referendum after the government proposed housing up to 913 asylum seekers. Only a handful of people at the village meeting voted against it A village has voted to hold a symbolic referendum on leaving the UK over plans to house asylum seekers at a nearby former RAF base. Barnham, in Suffolk, could become the second village to stage such a vote after residents backed the idea at a meeting on Saturday. At the meeting only six or seven voted against holding the referendum The Government plans to use RAF Barnham to accommodate up to 913 people. While the proposed vote would have no legal effect, the news comes after residents of Piddington in Oxfordshire staged a similar referendum in July over plans for an asylum accommodation site at a former military base near their village. Supporters in Barnham say they want to draw attention to their concerns about the plans and what they describe as a lack of consultation. The decision followed weeks of discussion in the village. Some parish councillors were reportedly concerned that a referendum could be seen as a publicity stunt and distract from the objections they had already raised. No date has been set for the referendum, and a working group is due to meet on Monday to discuss the next steps. John Bauer, chairman of Barnham Parish Council and a supporter of the referendum, said: “At the village meeting this afternoon the residents of Barnham voted decisively in favour of holding a referendum as a means to demonstrate the strength of feeling in the village at the government’s failure to consult anyone about a matter which will change the nature of the village.” The Home Office had previously considered accommodating up to 1,250 people at RAF Barnham, but its latest plans put the figure at up to 913. Some residents remain opposed to the plans despite the lower figure. Barnham residents also visited Piddington last month to learn about its referendum where the town saw 285 people backed the symbolic move to leave the UK and 26 voted against it, with one spoiled ballot. The vote did not change Piddington’s status or stop the proposal to house asylum seekers near the village. Prime Minister Andy Burnham said he understood residents’ “strength of feeling”, but argued that ending the use of asylum hotels meant making difficult decisions. He said: “The only thing to do is to get the numbers down, the number of crossings down. And they are significantly down. "They are now at a seven-year low. We also made a commitment to people to end the use of hotels to house refugees and asylum seekers, and that commitment needs to be honoured, and I think the vast majority of people say ‘yeah, that really does need to proceed’. “So this involves difficult difficult decisions. It’s about fairness across the country. I’m not saying that only one part of the country or one group of communities should do all of the work.” Culture Secretary Lisa Nandy said reconsidering the plan for the former MoD site near Piddington would place more pressure on other areas. She said: “The alternative would be to ask communities who have already seen their local community quadruple in size to take more of the load - and I think that’s deeply unfair.” [Image text:] PIDDINGTON VILLAGE HALL