Protests at a hotel in Essex housing asylum seekers “is a crisis that risks boiling over”, the local MP has said as pressure builds on the home secretary to close it down.
Neil Hudson, the Conservative MP for Epping Forest, has signed a letter along with other local politicians urging Home Secretary Yvette Cooper to make The Bell Hotel a priority for urgent decommissioning.
Mr Hudson told Sky News that protests at the site have led to “deeply troubling and unsettling” scenes, with people coming from outside the area “not to support the real concerns of our local community, but to disrupt and cause violence”.
He said: “This is a crisis that risks boiling over, and for the safety of our community, the government must get a grip on this situation now, and they must listen and act quickly to close the hotel.”
The letter to the home secretary, which requests an urgent meeting, was also signed by neighbouring Conservative MP Alex Burghart, Epping Forest District Council leader Christopher Whitbread, leader of Essex County Council Kevin Bentley, and Police, Fire and Crime Commissioner for Essex Roger Hirst.
It also expresses concerns about the use of the Phoenix Hotel in North Weald, in Mr Burghart’s Brentwood and Ongar constituency, to house asylum seekers, which has been subject to alleged arson attacks.
The letter said the sites are “proving to be entirely unsuitable” and “placing an unsustainable strain on police resources”.
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They added that this is “creating significant community tension, and leading to public disorder that is unacceptable to our residents and deeply concerning for the safety of all involved”.
Multiple demonstrations have been held outside The Bell since 13 July after an asylum seeker was charged with allegedly attempting to kiss a 14-year-old girl.
Hadush Gerberslasie Kebatu, 38, who was charged with sexual assault, denies the allegations. He is due to stand trial in August.
Since the disorder broke out, Essex Police said 14 people have been charged in connection with the protests and there have been 23 arrests, while eight officers have been injured.
One of the injured officers required hospitalisation “after being struck in the face with a bottle”, the letter from the authorities said.
It said that “large-scale protests and counter-protests” have attracted more than 2,000 people on some days and deploying police to the demonstrations is “putting our ability to maintain public safety at risk”.
“We support the Home Office’s wider objective of reducing reliance on hotels and are keen to work with you. However, we urge you to accelerate this process and make The Bell Hotel in Epping a priority for urgent closure,” the letter added.
Chancellor Rachel Reeves said last month that the government would close all asylum seeker hotels by the end of this parliament but with record numbers still crossing the Channel, it is not clear how this will be achieved or where those awaiting a decision will go.
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As Sky’s home editor Jason Farrell reports, tensions have also flared in Altrincham near Manchester, where a hotel has been repurposed to house asylum seekers.
Last week, Business Secretary Jonathan Reynolds told Sky News he “gets the public’s frustration” over asylum hotels.
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The government has since announced that asylum seekers will face homelessness if they refuse to move out of hotels, as part of their plans to reduce their use.
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However, it is not clear if they have immediate plans to shut down The Bell.
Last week, after Epping council voted to urge the government to shut the hotel, a spokesperson said: “We’ll continue to work closely with local police and community partners, in Epping and across the country, as we fix this broken system.”
Sky News has contacted the Home Office for further comment.
