A hotel in Epping, Essex, must continue housing asylum seekers after the council lost a Court of Appeal bid to challenge a High Court ruling. The council tried to appeal against the November decision not to grant an injunction blocking the hotel’s owner, Somani Hotels, from accommodating asylum seekers at the Bell Hotel. The hotel was the site of large-scale protests last summer, seeing residents from Epping and beyond gather in huge numbers to voice concerns against the use of the asylum hotel. However, in a judgment this morning, two Court of Appeal judges said the appeal could not go ahead. The decision comes after Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood revealed plans to reduce the burden of asylum seekers on the taxpayer, seeking to close asylum hotels nationwide, and incentivise failed asylum applicants to leave the country with payments up to £40,000.

Source: Ethiopian News March 13, 2026 23:58 UTC