Mayor urges council to challenge refugee hotel use

Conservative mayor Paul Bristow believes the planning rule applied in the Epping hotel case could be relevant for Peterborough

An elected mayor has called on a local authority to challenge the use of a city hotel to house asylum seekers.

On Monday, a judge granted a temporary injunction blocking migrants from being housed at The Bell Hotel in Epping, Essex.

In a letter to Peterborough City Council, the Conservative mayor for Cambridgeshire and Peterborough, Paul Bristow, said the city's Dragonfly Hotel was "wholly unsuitable" for asylum seekers and urged the authority to seek a similar injunction.

Dennis Jones, Labour leader of the council, said it was "waiting for the detailed findings" on the Epping hotel decision and would "review legal implications".

The Dragonfly Hotel is one of two in Peterborough being used to house asylum seekers

Previously, the city's Labour MPs Andrew Pakes and Sam Carling argued the hotel's location was "inappropriate" and "disappointing".

According to Home Office figures released on Thursday, 202 asylum seekers are currently housed in hotels in Peterborough, with the council saying two are being used for this purpose.

In his letter to chief executive Matt Gladstone, Bristow said the Epping judgment set a "significant precedent".

Referring to the Dragonfly Hotel, he wrote: "The hotel is wholly unsuitable.

"In view of the High Court ruling, I urge Peterborough City Council to challenge the continued use of the hotel legally, and to take all appropriate courses of action that will lead to a similar injunction."

Peterborough City Council leader Dennis Jones claimed the city was already housing "far more than our share of asylum seekers"

In response, Jones said: "We maintain that Peterborough has a proud history of welcoming asylum seekers and others in need to the city, but in a planned and coordinated way."

He said the city's resources were already stretched and that it was housing "far more than our share of asylum seekers than other areas of the country".

He added: "In addition, we believe it is not the ideal location, with the hotel sited in a residential area with limited access to services and amenities.

"We are waiting for the court to publish its detailed findings following this temporary injunction.

"We will review these and other legal implications before making our own decision on whether or not to launch a legal challenge."

A new joint statement has been made by Pakes, MP for Peterborough, and Carling, who represents the North West Cambs constituency.

"We've had productive discussions with councillor Dennis Jones about the implications of the recent court judgement and welcome the approach of the council to review the court's finding and to look at every option available," the pair said.

"The Labour government inherited a broken asylum system. The Tories opened the first asylum hotels and, at its peak, they oversaw the opening of 400 hotels at a cost almost £9m a day.

"We will continue to work with the Home Office to get the hotel stood down as soon as possible."

Across the country, other local authorities have said they are considering similar legal action to that taken by Epping Forest District Council.

Home Office lawyers have acknowledged the ruling could "substantially" have an impact on the government's ability to house the 32,000 asylum seekers currently living in 210 hotels across the UK if they do.

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