Concerns at placing refugees in Ipswich hotel were 'misplaced' - councillor

The Novotel in Ipswich housed asylum seekers between October 2022 and November 2023

A council leader has claimed concerns about the Government placing asylum seekers in a town centre hotel may have been "misplaced".

The Ipswich Novotel was used by the Home Office to house migrants from October 2022 to November 2023.

Ipswich Borough Council initially said the move would put an "unsustainable" strain on local services.

Labour council leader Neil McDonald has now said: "I don't believe there have been a lot of problems."

The government announced in October it would stop using 50 hotels to host asylum seekers by the end of January.

Mr McDonald said: "We were concerned that the support that was available in the town would be spread very thinly if we had to provide support for 200 extra people...

"Perhaps that was misplaced."

Demonstrators opposed to the hotel being used to house refugees gathered outside the premises in March 2023

He said volunteers groups "stepped up" to help refugees in the town, including Suffolk Refugee Support.

Mr McDonald added he was "delighted" the hotel will reopen, as the council are "keen to revitalise the town centre".

When the hotel was confirmed as a venue to house asylum seekers, the former leader of the council, David Ellesmere, said he was concerned about the effect it would have on "attracting visitors to the town".

And in March 2023, a group of about 30 people gathered to demonstrate against the Home Office's use of the hotel.

Martin Simmonds, from Suffolk Refugee Support, said it had been the group's "busiest year".

"Suffolk should be proud of playing a part in supporting those people."

In October 2022, David Ellesmere said Ipswich was taking 95% of the county's asylum seekers

However, he believed the system for moving asylum seekers to other accommodation was "impersonal".

A Home Office spokesperson confirmed residents accommodated in hotels were given a minimum of five days notice in advance of being moved, and said: "We take the welfare of those in our care extremely seriously."

The Novotel, which housed about 200 asylum seekers at capacity, is currently undertaking works to reopen "as soon as possible to welcome back old and new guests", a hotel spokesperson has said.