Government wins asylum hotel appeal

A TEMPORARY injunction that was set to block asylum seekers from being housed at an Essex hotel has been overturned at the Court of Appeal.

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Somani Hotels, which owns the Bell Hotel in Epping, and the Home Office challenged a High Court ruling that would have stopped 138 asylum seekers from being housed there beyond September 12.

In a ruling last week, Mr Justice Eyre granted Epping Forest District Council (EFDC) an interim injunction after the authority claimed that Somani Hotels had breached planning rules by using the Bell as accommodation for asylum seekers.

After a hearing on Thursday, three Court of Appeal judges yesterday ruled in favour of Somani Hotels and the Home Office, stating that Mr Justice Eyre's ruling was "seriously flawed in principle." The ruling will come as a relief to the Home Office, which had been braced for further legal challenges from other councils over the use of hotels in their areas.