Disused military sites will be used to house asylum seekers who enter the UK illegally on small boats, the Government has confirmed.

Immigration minister Robert Jenrick yesterday confirmed the Government would go ahead with plans to use RAF Scampton and RAF Wethersfield to house asylum seekers.

He said this would be a ‘cheaper' alternative to using hotels, which the Home Office estimates costs £6m a day.

West Lindsey DC said it had put measures in place to take legal action against the Home Office as the council had planned to use RAF Scampton for a £300m regeneration scheme while Braintree DC confirmed it was exploring all legal options to stop the use of RAF Wethersfield.

A Braintree statement read: ‘Our view remains that Wethersfield Airfield is an unsuitable site, given the lack of capacity in local services, its isolated location, the size of the site and the fact that the scale of the development proposed could have a significant adverse impact upon the local community.'

Mr Jenrick said: ‘Delivering accommodation on surplus military sites will provide cheaper and more orderly, suitable accommodation for those arriving in small boats.

‘We understand the concerns of local communities and are working closely to listen to their views and reduce the impact of these sites, including through providing onsite security and financial support.'

The Home Office is also in talks with the owners of Portland Port to site floating accommodation for asylum seekers.

Dorset Council said it had ‘serious concerns' about the use of the port and noted it had had ‘limited input'.