The government body operating Napier Barracks in Kent as accommodation for people seeking asylum is refusing to say how much has been spent on managing the site.

But charities say the public “deserve to know the price of this inhumanity” and called for the figures to be published.

Napier Barracks, in Folkestone, was turned into accommodation for people seeing asylum in the UK last September by the Home Office.

Since then the site and its users have faced many issues, including protests, a fire, arrests and a Covid-19 outbreak.

Inspections have also deemed the living conditions unsuitable and six asylum seekers have also taken the Home Office to court over their stay at the site.

Charities and MPs have repeatedly called for the camp to close.

Now, through a Freedom of Information (FOI) request submitted by the PA news agency, the Home Office has refused to say what the overall expenditure has been.

The department said that some £500,000 has been spent on the site for improvements to the accommodation and recreational activities, but declined to detail how much had been handed to contractors who helped prepare and run the site.

The department said the information is considered to be “commercially sensitive”.

It added: “If we were to disclose the information to you, this would be likely to prejudice the commercial interests of both the Home Office and those companies with whom the Home Office enters into contracts.”

The FOI also asked how many times Home Secretary Priti Patel has visited Napier Barracks in that same time period, as well as minister Chris Philp.

The Home Office said that Ms Patel had not visited the site and Mr Philp had visited once.

Sile Reynolds, senior policy adviser at Freedom from Torture, said: “At a time when the Government should be investing in safe, dignified and humane housing for all people in the UK, it is wasting money on this hateful and divisive strategy.

“The public and the people who languish in the barracks deserve to know the price of this inhumanity. What does Priti Patel have to hide?”

Ms Reynolds called on the Home Secretary to visit the barracks so she can “see first-hand how her decisions have affected vulnerable people”.

Bella Sankey, director of charity Detention Action, said: “The quasi-detention of traumatised people at disused military barracks has been one of Priti Patel’s flagship policies, yet despite public outcry at the appalling conditions and criticism in the courts and in Parliament, we now learn she has failed to check for herself.”

She added that this was “shocking but not surprising” and also called for the expenditure figures to be released.

Shadow Home Office minister Bambos Charalambous told PA: “After a recent High Court ruling found that Napier Barracks was not fit for housing asylum seekers, it is shocking that ministers are unwilling to reveal how much they have spent on this sub-standard accommodation and how much they have paid to outside contractors.”

A Home Office spokesman said: “During the height of an unprecedented health pandemic, to ensure asylum seekers were not left destitute, additional accommodation was required at extremely short notice.

“These sites are a temporary measure to ease pressure on the system during these unprecedented times and reduce our reliance on hotels.

“Significant improvements have been made to the site, including improved accommodation and more outdoor and recreational activities.”

Some £500,000 has been spent on the site, including improvements to accommodation and more recreational and outdoor activities, including access to basketball, a library, prayer rooms and yoga, according to the Home Office.

Last week it was reported that Napier could stay open for "many years" yet.

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