Campaigners condemn Braverman for claiming asylum seekers engaged in "invasion" of south coast The Joint Council for the Welfare of Immigrants has condemned Suella Braverman for saying that asylum seekers are engaged in an “invasion” of the south coast. (See 5.32pm.) Early evening summary Suella Braverman, the home secretary, has said she “never ignored legal advice” on keeping asylum seekers at an overcrowded immigration centre. In a Commons statement, she claimed she never blocked proposals for asylum seekers to be housed in hotels (despite reports quoting multiple sources claiming she did). But Braverman also seemed to accept that the overcrowding at the Manston immigration centre was partly her responsibility, because she said she refused to “prematurely release thousands of people into local communities without having anywhere for them to stay”. (See 5.27pm.) She also outraged charities representing refugees by saying that asylum seekers were staging an “invasion” of the south coast of England. (See 6.43pm.) Some Tory MPs strongly backed her stance in the Commons, and while others are privately alarmed at what she is doing at the Home Office, they did not speak out in the chamber this afternoon. Braverman’s performance may boost her standing in her party in the short term, but it is unlikely to quell allegations that she mishandled the situation. These are from ITV’s Robert Peston. For the Telegraph’s Christopher Hope, the crucial claim she made was that illegal immigration is out of control. Andrew Slaughter (Lab) asks if Braverman ever used other unsecure forms of communication, like WhatsApp, to pass on government documents. Braverman dodges the questions. She says she explained all this in her letter today (it did not cover this point), and she attacks Labour’s record on immigration. The statement is now over. Braverman was taking questions for about an hour and 40 minutes. Stephen Farry (Alliance) says more than 70% of asylum claims are successful. So it is wrong to describe these people as economic migrants, he says. Braverman says what is not right is for people to come here to take advantage of the UK system. Back in the Commons Suella Braverman, the home secretary, says her comment about the immigration system being broken (see 5.23pm) should not be seen as criticism of her predecessor Priti Patel. She says she is grateful for what Patel achieved. Campaigners condemn Braverman for claiming asylum seekers engaged in "invasion" of south coast The Joint Council for the Welfare of Immigrants has condemned Suella Braverman for saying that asylum seekers are engaged in an “invasion” of the south coast. (See 5.32pm.) Care4Calais, another charity working with refugees, has made the same point. And so has Prof Tanja Bueltmann, an academic at the University of Strathclyde specialising in migration. Peter Bone (Con) claims anyone listening to this statement would conclude the opposition is more interested in the interests of illegal immigrants than in the interests of taxpayers. Braverman claims that since she has been home secretary 30 new hotels have been approved as places to house asylum seekers. She says that equates to 4,500 bed spaces. Cooper claims Braverman was repeatedly told she was breaking law by blocking plans to deal with Manston overcrowding This is what Yvette Cooper, the shadow home secretary, said when she accused Suella Braverman of repeatedly ignoring legal advice. Cooper said Braverman was warned by officials and other ministers that she was “acting outside the law by failing to provide alternative accommodation”. She went on: Can she confirm she turned down contingency plans that she was offered that would have reduced overcrowding, as the reports say? Cooper said Braverman also had legal obligations under 1999 legislation and 2018 regulations. She went on: Can she confirm she was advised repeatedly that she was breaking the law by failing to agree to these plans? One of these meetings on Manston was on 19 October. Can she confirm she refused these proposals on that date – it was the same day she broke sections 2.3 and sections 1.4 of the ministerial code. So can she confirm whether she in fact breached the ministerial code, which provides for ministers abiding by the law, three times in a single day and how is anyone supposed to have confidence in her as home secretary with these serious issues? Braverman says hotel accommodation for asylum seekers on average cost £150 per person per night. She says by her standards that pays for “quite a nice hotel”. She says complaints about the quality of the accommodation provided are unjustified. Dame Angela Eagle (Lab) says, if the immigration system is broken, who has been in power for the last 12 years? Braverman says uncontrolled immigration became a problem when Labour was in power.