Anti-migrant protests met with counter demonstrations

Protests over the use of hotels for housing asylum seekers have been held across the UK.

Demonstrators gathered in parts of England including Bristol, Liverpool and London, as well as in Mold in Wales, Perth in Scotland and County Antrim in Northern Ireland.

Police stepped in to keep opposing groups separated in many places where anti-racism campaigners mounted counter-demonstrations.

It comes after a High Court ruling this week blocked a hotel in Epping, in Essex, from accommodating asylum seekers and some local authorities in England said they were now considering legal challenges.