House Workplace seeks to attraction towards court docket ruling on asylum lodge

[ad_1] Kate Whannel Political reporter

<img sizes="(min-width: 1280px) 50vw, (min-width: 1008px) 66vw, 96vw" srcset="https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/240/cpsprodpb/032a/live/93384dd0-7f4f-11f0-ace8-c7fe3706c172.jpg.webp 240w,https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/320/cpsprodpb/032a/live/93384dd0-7f4f-11f0-ace8-c7fe3706c172.jpg.webp 320w,https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/480/cpsprodpb/032a/live/93384dd0-7f4f-11f0-ace8-c7fe3706c172.jpg.webp 480w,https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/640/cpsprodpb/032a/live/93384dd0-7f4f-11f0-ace8-c7fe3706c172.jpg.webp 640w,https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/800/cpsprodpb/032a/live/93384dd0-7f4f-11f0-ace8-c7fe3706c172.jpg.webp 800w,https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/1024/cpsprodpb/032a/live/93384dd0-7f4f-11f0-ace8-c7fe3706c172.jpg.webp 1024w,https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/1536/cpsprodpb/032a/live/93384dd0-7f4f-11f0-ace8-c7fe3706c172.jpg.webp 1536w" src="https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/480/cpsprodpb/032a/live/93384dd0-7f4f-11f0-ace8-c7fe3706c172.jpg.webp" loading="eager" alt="PA Media Image of the front of the Bell Hotel which is surrounded by a metal fence. A police van is parked outside. " class="sc-d1200759-0 dvfjxj"/> PA Media The federal government is looking for the fitting to attraction towards a Excessive Courtroom ruling which blocks asylum seekers being housed in an Essex lodge.

Earlier this week, Epping Forest District Council was granted a short lived injunction to cease individuals being positioned on the Bell Lodge in Epping.

The court docket refused a last-minute effort from House Secretary Yvette Cooper to intervene and get the council's case dismissed.

If profitable in its new bid to be concerned, the federal government is then anticipated to contemplate an additional attraction towards the ruling itself.

House Secretary Yvette Cooper mentioned the federal government was dedicated to closing all asylum motels, however mentioned it wanted to occur in "a correctly managed approach".

She mentioned the federal government have been working to do it "as a part of an orderly, deliberate and sustained programme that avoids merely creating issues for different areas or native councils on account of piecemeal court docket selections or a return to the sort of chaos which led to so many motels being opened within the first place".

"That's the reason for the House Workplace attraction on this case, to make sure that going ahead, the closure of all motels might be completed in a correctly managed approach proper throughout the nation."

A senior House Workplace supply mentioned it was a matter of "democracy" and that the judiciary shouldn't be capable of inform the federal government the place it could actually and might't place asylum seekers.

As well as, Somani Motels, the proprietor of the Bell Lodge, will attraction towards the court docket order blocking using the lodge as lodging for asylum seekers, the corporate's solicitors mentioned.

Chris Whitbread, chief of Epping council, has beforehand mentioned he would "discover the cash" to battle an attraction, if the federal government selected to deliver one.

One asylum seeker residing on the lodge has told the BBC the federal government ought to shut the motels and let asylum seekers work to allow them to assist themselves.

In latest weeks, 1000's of individuals have gathered close to the Bell Lodge in Epping, Essex to protest after an asylum seeker residing there was charged with sexually assaulting a 14-year-old lady within the city.

Bringing its case, Epping Council argued that the presence of the lodge "poses a transparent danger of additional escalating neighborhood tensions already at a excessive, and the danger of irreparable hurt to the area people".

Earlier than the judgement was handed down, the House Workplace requested to intervene within the case, warning that the court docket's resolution might "considerably influence" its means to accommodate asylum seekers in motels throughout the UK.

The court docket dominated in favour of Epping Council and mentioned the 140 asylum seekers must go away the lodge by 16:00 BST on 12 September.

For the reason that ruling, greater than half a dozen councils have mentioned they have been contemplating taking comparable authorized motion.

Protests and counter-protests are anticipated to happen exterior motels throughout the nation over the approaching days.

The federal government is legally-bound to seek out properties for asylum seekers who would in any other case be destitute whereas they anticipate a choice to be made on their asylum declare.

Rising numbers of asylum seekers coming to the UK has led to a larger use of motels for lodging.

Figures launched by the federal government on Thursday revealed that the variety of asylum seekers being housed in motels had reached 32,059 - an 8% improve within the 12 months since Labour got here to energy however down on the 2023 peak.

The variety of asylum purposes within the 12 months to June reached a brand new document of 111,000.

Conservative shadow house secretary Chris Philp mentioned the House Workplace's resolution to hunt to attraction towards the closure of the Bell Lodge was "fully unsuitable".

"As an alternative of attempting to maintain unlawful immigrants in costly motels the Conservatives would instantly deport all unlawful arrivals and guarantee cities like Epping are by no means put on this place once more."