Ministers bracing for legal challenges after council wins battle for temporary injunction to close Epping migrant hotel
Labour Ministers are said to be preparing for a series of legal disputes after a local council successfully secured an injunction forcing the closure of a migrant accommodation hotel in Essex.
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Epping Forest District Council has won its bid for an injunction to stop migrants from being accommodated at the Bell Hotel in Epping despite a last-ditch bid from the Home Office to delay the ruling.
During the hearing, Home Office lawyers warned that the decision could “substantially impact” the government’s ability to use hotels to house asylum seekers across the UK.
Officials inside the Home Office admitted the department had been left “reeling” by the judgment, according to The Guardian, and are bracing themselves for further legal challenges from councils.
Under current law, the department remains obliged to provide accommodation for asylum seekers while their claims are being assessed.
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The legal action follows a series of protests in recent weeks outside the hotel after an asylum seeker living there was charged with sexually assaulting a 14-year-old girl.
Following the decision, the hotel, which is owned by Somani Hotels Ltd, must be cleared by September 12.
At a hearing last week, barristers for Epping Council claimed Somani Hotels breached planning rules as the site is not being used for its intended purpose as a hotel, and that the situation “could not be much worse”.
Somani Hotels has said it will appeal the decision.
Barristers for Somani called attempts to close it “draconian” and warned shuttering the location would cause “hardship” for those inside the hotel, and that “political views” were not grounds for an injunction to be granted.
They warned closing the hotel would have "wide-ranging consequences" across the UK, implying other migrant hotels may be forced to close in the wake of today's decision.
They also said that contracts to house asylum seekers were a “financial lifeline” for the hotel, which was only 1% full in August 2022, when it was open to paying customers.
The hotel became a flash point for protests in recent weeks after asylum seeker Hadush Gerberslasie Kebatu, 38, was charged with trying to kiss a teenage girl in the local area.
Kebatu, who was housed at the hotel at the time of the incident, denies the allegations and is due to stand trial later this month.
Protests began peacefully, but quickly turned violent after far-right agitators became involved, including men with links to neo-nazi parties in the UK.
Speaking following today's decision, Chris Whitbread, the leader of Epping Forest District Council, said: “I am delighted. This is great news for our residents. The last few weeks have placed an intolerable strain on our community but today we have some great news.
“Thank you to Mr Justice Eyre. For the first time in weeks we can see a chink of light at the end of the tunnel.
“I also want to say a massive thank you to our planning and legal teams who have worked day and night in preparation for our day in court. They have done our council proud.
“This is not the end of the matter. Having obtained an interim provision the next stage is for the council to return to the court and seek a permanent injunction.
“Home Office policy ignores the issues and concerns of local residents that the council represents.
“Today we have made a step towards redressing the imbalance and showing that local people do have some say, whatever the Home Office thinks.”
He told LBC: "This is good news for Epping Forest, we're about what's right for our residents - the students, the businesses in Epping Forest and making sure we get treated fairly by this government.
"This is the beginning of the process - we want to make sure The Bell doesn't get used in future."
He went on to call on Epping residents to ensure all future protests remain peaceful following a number of arrests at recent demonstrations.
The Government said it will "carefully consider" the ruling as it slammed the Conservatives for creating a "broken asylum system."
Reacting to the judgment, border security minister Dame Angela Eagle said: “This Government inherited a broken asylum system, at the peak there were over 400 hotels open.
“We will continue working with local authorities and communities to address legitimate concerns. Our work continues to close all asylum hotels by the end of this Parliament.
“We will carefully consider this judgment. As this matter remains subject to ongoing legal proceedings it would be inappropriate to comment further at this stage.”
Nigel Farage described today's ruling as a "victory" for local parents.
He said: “This is a victory for the parents and concerned residents of Epping.
“They do not want their young women being assaulted on the streets. This community stood up bravely, despite being slandered as far-right, and have won.
“They represent the vast majority of decent people in this country.
“Young, undocumented males who break into the UK illegally should not be free to walk the streets anywhere. They must be detained and deported.
“I hope that Epping provides inspiration to others across the country.”
Enver Solomon, chief executive of Refugee Council, said: “Everyone agrees that hotels are the wrong answer.
“They cost the taxpayer billions, trap people in limbo and are flashpoints in communities.
“Through our frontline work, we see how protests and hostility leave people who have fled war and persecution feeling terrified and targeted in the very places they are forced to live. This makes an already traumatising situation worse and prevents people from feeling safe.
“Instead of using costly hotels, the Government should partner with local councils to provide safe, cost-effective accommodation within communities.
“But ultimately, the only way to end hotel use for good is to resolve asylum applications quickly and accurately so people can either rebuild their lives here or return home with dignity.
“This will cut costs and allow refugees to integrate into their new communities, contribute, and play their part in Britain.”
Shadow home secretary Chris Philp has described the injunction as “a moment of relief for the people of Epping”.
The Conservative MP said: “Residents should never have had to fight their own Government just to feel safe in their own town.
“Local residents have every right to feel safe in their own streets and every right to object when their community is treated as a dumping ground.”
He went on to accuse Labour of deciding to “tear up the deterrents the Conservatives put in place” and said: “The Conservatives will remove all illegal arrivals immediately and put a proper deterrent in place so that towns like Epping are never put in this position again.”