A Piddington mother has warned the “British way of life is being ripped away” as Labour prepares to house up to 1,250 single adult male asylum seekers at a former military site near her village, home to just 350 people.
Andrea Owen, who grew up in the nearby military community of Bicester, Oxfordshire, said residents felt their concerns were being ignored as plans for the site progressed.
“The British traditions and the British way of life are just being ripped away,” Ms Owen told GB News.
The local mother said migrants were being forced on a community that had built its identity around a close-knit, peaceful way of life.
“It’s sad, and it makes me angry,” she said, adding: “It makes me so angry that nobody asked for this. Nobody.
“The Government just seems so blinkered about it. They’re not seeing the reality of this and the impact of this on the country as a whole.”
She said the concerns extended beyond her own village, arguing that people across Britain were increasingly worried about the impact of large-scale asylum accommodation on their communities.
“I speak for the whole country,” Ms Owen said.
She also said the proposed camp was particularly troubling given her family's deep military connections.
Ms Owen revealed her grandfather served during the Second World War as a rear gunner on Lancaster bombers, while her father served for more than 20 years in the Army.
Her brother also served for around 25 years as a frontline soldier, including two tours of Afghanistan.
Ms Owen said her family was “lost for words” and angry about the decision to use the former military site to accommodate asylum seekers.
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“We’re a military town and a proud military town as well,” she insisted.
“The British people should be proud to be British. We should be standing up for our country and for our grandparents.
“They’d be turning in their graves at the moment with what’s happening. They did not fight for this country for this to happen."
The proposed migrant camp site is close to Piddington's playing field, and residents have raised concerns about how many people could travel between the accommodation and surrounding communities.
Ms Owen said the most practical route into the town would likely take asylum seekers through the village, sparking fears for vulnerable residents including her own young daughter.
“The likelihood is they’ll be passing through there every single day throughout the day,” she said.
“I’m not sure how I’ll feel about my daughter spending time with her grandparents anymore.
“How safe is it going to be? I don’t know.”
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