Council 'carefully considering' asylum hotel ruling

The Cedar Court hotel in Wakefield has been used to house asylum seekers

The leader of Wakefield Council has said the authority will be "carefully considering the implications" of a High Court ruling ordering the removal of asylum seekers from a hotel in Essex.

On Monday, Epping Forest District Council was granted a temporary injunction blocking migrants from being housed at The Bell Hotel in Epping.

The ruling has led other councils to consider launching legal challenges against the use of hotels to accommodate asylum seekers in their areas.

In Wakefield, where councillors have previously attempted to take legal action over the use of the city's Cedar Court hotel to house migrants, Denise Jeffrey said she wanted asylum seekers to be provided with "more appropriate accommodation".

In 2023, Wakefield, Kirklees and Calderdale councils took legal advice to try to block government plans to house more asylum seekers at hotels in their districts.

However, the three authorities were told at the time they were unable to apply for injunctions to stop the Home Office policy, the Local Democracy Reporting Service said.

According to government figures, as of the end of June 211 asylum seekers were living in hotels in the Wakefield district, with 2,217 placed in hotels across Yorkshire and the Humber in total.

Responding to Monday's High Court ruling, Jeffrey said: "We want asylum seekers to be provided with more appropriate accommodation so that Cedar Court hotel in Wakefield stops being used to house them.

"The government should instead work with councils, housing providers, and local communities to develop a comprehensive plan to meet their needs elsewhere.

"We've been raising concerns about this with the Home Office since early 2023.

"We're now carefully considering the implications of the High Court ruling to award Epping Forest District Council an interim injunction.

"Wakefield will continue to put our local communities first in everything we do."

She added that the Labour government had a "dire inheritance" with a "broken asylum system".

She said she supported the government's commitment to end the use of asylum hotels this parliament but urged ministers to go "further and faster".

Home Office lawyers have acknowledged the ruling could "substantially impact" the government's ability to house the 32,000 asylum seekers currently living in 210 hotels across the UK if other councils pursue similar action.

They also warned that granting Epping Forest an interim injunction "runs the risk of acting as an impetus for further violent protests round other asylum accommodation".

The government has pledged to no longer use hotels by the end of this parliament, but some contracts are in place until 2029.

Border Security Minister Dame Angela Eagle has said the government will "continue working with local authorities and communities to address legitimate concerns".

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