Yvette Cooper is preparing to appeal a High Court injunction that ordered the closure of the Bell Hotel in Epping, currently used to house asylum seekers. The Home Office will seek to overturn a temporary injunction requiring all residents to leave by 12 September 2025 unless the hotel's owner successfully appeals. Epping Forest District Council argued the hotel needed planning permission for long-term asylum accommodation and cited public safety and proximity to schools and care homes. Officials warned the ruling could prompt similar council challenges and increase pressure on Britain’s asylum estate. The government plans to close all asylum hotels by 2029, with over 32,000 asylum seekers currently in up to 210 hotels.
The legal battle was triggered after Epping Forest District Council successfully argued that the Bell Hotel required planning permission to be repurposed as long-term accommodation for asylum seekers. The High Court ordered all residents to leave by 12 September 2025, unless the hotel's owner, Somani Hotels, launches a successful appeal. The ruling followed months of controversy surrounding the site, which had become a flashpoint for anti-immigration protests. Councillors cited public safety concerns and the location's proximity to schools and care homes as reasons for taking legal action.
The Home Office's lawyers warned the decision could embolden other councils to mount similar legal challenges, creating what they described as a "new norm" that would intensify pressure on Britain's asylum estate. Mr Jarvis said: "This Government will close all asylum hotels and we will clear up the mess that we inherited from the previous government. But these closures need to be done in a managed and ordered way. That's why we'll appeal this decision."
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