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Aberdeen MP Douglas Lumsden calls plans to house 149 more asylum seekers in city 'a disgrace' as allocation limit is breached

From the Newshound archive · first published 19 September 2026 · last updated 22 September 2026.

Villagers of Piddington, Oxfordshire, whose community voted 285 to 26 — a 92 per cent turnout — to symbolically declare independence from Britain in protest at the asylum-seeker camp plans.
Villagers of Piddington, Oxfordshire, whose community voted 285 to 26 — a 92 per cent turnout — to symbolically declare independence from Britain in protest at the asylum-seeker camp plans.

Aberdeen South Conservative MP Douglas Lumsden has called Home Office plans to place a further 149 asylum seekers on St Peter Street a "disgrace", warning the move will push the city above its agreed allocation limit. Aberdeen already houses 707 asylum seekers — the second highest number in Scotland — and Lumsden says residents were given no say in the decision. He accused the Labour government of using Aberdeen as a "scapegoat" for its failure to stop small boat crossings, and demanded the proposals be paused.

Lumsden warned the extra numbers will worsen an already stretched GP system: 'It's just going to make that harder.'

The Home Office claimed it has saved taxpayers over £1bn by closing asylum hotels since the election, and is working to reduce pressure on councils.

A Suffolk village is also considering a 'Piddington-style' referendum to leave the UK in protest at plans to house 1,250 asylum seekers at nearby RAF Barnham.

MoreBBC News - ScotlandMP criticises city asylum seeker accommodation plansGB NewsLabour branded 'disgraceful' over plan to house 150 asylum seekers in heart of city already overrun with migrantsYahoo News UKSecond village considering 'Piddington-style' referendum over asylum seeker plansThe IndependentSecond English village could vote to leave UK in opposition to asylum seeker plans
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