A High Court decision has suspended the government from providing asylum accommodation at an Epping hotel, north of London, following weeks of rioting protests in the town.
Judge Stephen Eyre granted permission for an injunction on Tuesday to prevent the Bell Hotel's use as migrant accommodation on the grounds of the council that the scheme threatened to stir up tensions in a community already rocked by rioting.
The Home Office had resisted, asserting that the ruling would "substantially affect" its capacity to house asylum seekers throughout the UK. In defiance of those complaints, the judge issued the order and instructed the owners of the hotel, Somani Hotels Limited, to clear asylum seekers out of the hotel by September 12.
The decision follows a series of angry protests in front of the Bell Hotel since July, sparked by the detention of an asylum seeker who is accused of sexually assaulting a 14-year-old girl. He denies the accusation, but the case has stoked anti-immigration fury in Epping and further afield. Police say there have been at least six protests since July 17, with police and cars targeted during the violence. Some men are now charged with violent disorder.
The disturbance has spread outward, prompting additional anti-immigration protests in London and other English towns. The council asserted that it was "a clear risk of further escalating community tensions" to continue housing migrants in the hotel.
For Prime Minister Keir Starmer, the move is a new headache in his struggle to dominate Britain's immigration discussion. The Labour leader is under increasing attack from Nigel Farage's Reform UK party, which is picking up votes in the polls by criticizing the government over its inability to stop small-boat Channel crossings.
Since Starmer became prime minister in July 2024, over 50,000 individuals have braved the perilous crossing from northern France on small boats. Labour has promised to end the practice of using hotels for asylum seekers by the next election, due in 2029, as a cost-cutting measure and as a means of lowering community tensions.
But with the Bell Hotel row now laying bare fault lines in the government's approach, the question is whether Starmer will be able to deliver on his promises while fending off political pressure on the right and rising unrest on the streets.
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