Conservative chief Kemi Badenoch is encouraging Tory-controlled councils to think about launching authorized challenges in opposition to using lodges to deal with asylum seekers of their areas.
Badenoch mentioned Epping Forest District Council had achieved “a victory for native folks”, after a Excessive Court docket ruling blocked a lodge from housing asylum seekers.
In a letter to Conservative council leaders, Badenoch wrote “we again you to take comparable motion to guard your group… in case your authorized recommendation helps it”.
A Labour spokesperson mentioned Badenoch’s letter was “determined and hypocritical nonsense from the architects of the damaged asylum system”.
The Labour spokesperson mentioned below the Tories, “the variety of asylum lodges in use rose as excessive as 400”.
“There are actually half that and there are actually 20,000 fewer asylum seekers in lodges than at their peak below the Tories,” the spokesperson added.
It comes after the High Court on Monday granted the Conservative-controlled Epping council a temporary injunction to cease migrants from being accommodated at The Bell Lodge in Essex.
The courtroom dominated that about 140 asylum seekers have to be moved out of the lodge by 12 September, giving the federal government restricted time to search out various housing.
Councils throughout England are contemplating comparable authorized challenges as ministers to attract up contingency plans for housing asylum seekers set to be faraway from the Bell Lodge.
Traditionally, lodges have solely been used to deal with asylum seekers in short-term emergency conditions when different lodging was unavailable.
However lodge use rose sharply throughout the Covid-19 pandemic, hitting a peak of 56,042 in 2023 when the Conservatives had been in authorities.
The Labour authorities has pledged to finish using migrant lodges by 2029, by reducing small-boat crossings and dashing up choices on asylum claims.
There have been 32,345 asylum seekers being housed in lodges on the finish of March, down 15% from the top of December, in accordance with Dwelling Workplace figures.
In recent times, different councils have taken authorized motion in an try to shut asylum lodges of their areas however in earlier circumstances judges have refused to intervene.
Conservative-run Epping Forest District Council efficiently argued its case was completely different because the lodge had change into a security threat, in addition to a breach of planning regulation by ceasing to be a standard lodge.
The decide dominated in favour of the council, which made the case there had been “evidenced harms” associated to protests across the lodge, which had led to violence and arrests.
For different councils to observe swimsuit they must present the Excessive Court docket proof of native hurt.
On Wednesday, various councils, together with some run by Labour, mentioned they had been assessing their authorized choices.
In her letter, Badenoch advised Tory council leaders they might “want to take formal recommendation from planning officers on the opposite planning enforcement choices accessible to your council in relation to unauthorised growth or change of use”.
The Conservative chief of Broxbourne Council, Corina Gander, mentioned she was “anticipating to go down the identical path” as Epping Forest District Council when submitting a authorized problem to an asylum lodge in her space.
Reform UK chief Nigel Farage has mentioned all 12 councils managed by his celebration will “do every little thing of their energy to observe Epping’s lead”.
The chief of Reform UK-led West Northamptonshire Council mentioned he was “contemplating the implications of this judgment to know any similarities and variations and actively trying on the choices now accessible to us”.
Carol Dean, chief of Labour-controlled Tamworth Council, mentioned her authority had beforehand determined in opposition to authorized motion however was now “fastidiously assessing” what the choice would possibly imply for the world.
She mentioned it was a “probably essential authorized precedent”.
If profitable, additional authorized challenges have the potential to pile extra stress on the federal government to search out various housing choices for migrants.
Shadow residence secretary Chris Philp mentioned asylum seekers moved out of the lodge in Epping shouldn’t be put in different lodges, flats or house-shares.
In a letter to Home Secretary Yvette Cooper, he referred to as for various lodging resembling former navy websites or barges for use.
Dwelling Workplace Minister Dan Jarvis advised the BBC the federal government was ” contingency choices” for housing these being moved out of the Bell Lodge however gave no particular examples.
“There’s more likely to be a variety of various preparations in several elements of the nation,” Jarvis mentioned.
In June, ministers mentioned the federal government was wanting to buy tower blocks and former pupil lodging, exterior to deal with migrants.
