Police take pro-migrant protesters to asylum hotel

Telegraph

4 days ago

Police have admitted escorting pro-migrant protesters to an asylum hotel at the centre of days of volatile demonstrations.
Essex Police initially denied that it had brought activists from the group Stand up to Racism to the Bell Hotel amid claims by anti-migrant protesters that the arrival of counter-demonstrators sparked the violence on July 17.
However, the force backtracked after being shown footage of the protesters being escorted by officers from a nearby station to the hotel.
On Wednesday, Essex Police will hold a press conference, at which is expected to explain its policing of the demonstrations.
It came as Angela Rayner, the Deputy Prime Minister, admitted that mass migration is threatening community cohesion, amid growing fears over another summer of riots.
In total, six people have been charged with offences related to the disorder in Epping, following further clashes between demonstrators and police on Sunday.
Assistant Chief Constable Stuart Hooper said: 'We have a reasonable duty to protect people who want to exercise their rights.
'In terms of bringing people to the hotel, the police have a duty to facilitate free assembly. We would only ever take people away from protest if we felt there was an immediate threat to people or property, to free up police resources, to protect others, or to prevent additional violence.
'In Epping, officers took all three of those into account before making their decisions.'
Residents said the decision to escort counter-protesters, some of whom were masked, towards the hotel had made violence inevitable.
Footage shared on social media suggested the confrontation escalated shortly after the arrival of the counter-demonstrators, with objects reportedly thrown and minor injuries sustained.
Orla Minihane, a leader of the anti-migrant protests and a Reform UK council candidate, said that locals – many of whom said they were there because they wanted women and girls to be safe going out alone – felt police were almost forcing a 'confrontation' between the two groups.
Nigel Farage, the Reform UK leader, said: 'I didn't want to believe this had happened and then I saw the video. It's an absolute disgrace, and the police's priorities need urgently looking at.'
The row follows numerous accusations of two-tier justice levelled against police in recent months.
Allison Pearson, The Telegraph journalist, was investigated by Essex Police after she posted an allegedly racist tweet online. The force later dropped the investigation.
Thursday's demonstration was one of a series of protests outside the Bell Hotel after Hadush Gerberslasie Kebatu, a 38-year-old asylum seeker, was charged with sexual assault. The migrant, who denies the charges, is alleged to have attempted to kiss a 14-year-old girl.
On Monday, anti-migrant protests spread to Norfolk after plans to house single male asylum seekers at a hotel were revealed.
Hundreds of demonstrators waved flags, chanted 'we want our country back' and clashed with counter-protesters outside the Park Hotel in Diss on Monday evening.
There were no violent clashes, but ugly scenes unfolded as protesters tried to take down the other group's signs and shouted in each other's faces.
The hotel in Diss has housed asylum seekers since 2023, but they have mostly been vulnerable women and children. They will now be replaced by single men. South Norfolk council and Norfolk Constabulary have both raised concerns about the proposed change.
From around 5.30pm, protesters arrived at the back entrance of the hotel and stood in a long, narrow line on the pavement of Park Road. Several were dressed in St George's Cross bucket hats, while others carried Union Flags.
They shouted 'send them home' and 'stop prioritising migrants over our population'.
Across the road, a group of about 30 counter-protesters stood by the hotel gates with signs that read 'refugees welcome/stop the far Right'.
They tried to drown out the larger group with chants of 'say it loud, say it clear, refugees are welcome here'.
After trading chants and insults for about 30 minutes, anti-migrant demonstrators crossed the road and a line of police officers had to step in to keep the groups apart.
Vastly outnumbered, the counter-protesters left shortly after 6pm. Norfolk Constabulary said no arrests were made.
The force has previously expressed concerns about the potential strain on resources that single adult males instead of families being housed at the hotel would have. The council has also written to the Home Office asking it to halt the plans.
Daniel Elmer, the authority's Conservative leader, said: 'We are really disappointed by the decision made by the Home Office to remove families from the Park Hotel and to replace them with single male asylum seekers.
'South Norfolk, and especially Diss, has a long history of welcoming refugees and those in need of help and offering a safe place to stay.
'The families have been with us for two years, and it has been a success. They have integrated well into the local community, with the children going to local schools and the mothers welcomed by local community groups. This success has made the decision by the Home Office that much more difficult to understand.'
The Home Office was contacted for comment.
Meanwhile, migrant hotel protests spread to London on Tuesday night after claims that asylum seekers housed in Epping were being moved to a four-star hotel in Canary Wharf. The Home Office denied the claims.