The Epping affair and the case of the 'migrant hotel'

By Coby Saxby

In yet another blow to Sir Keir Starmer’s premiership the High Court has imposed a temporary injunction halting the use of the Bell Hotel in Epping for the purposes of housing asylum seekers. The High Court injunction goes a long way towards meeting the goal of the protest movement but, with the Home Office already signalling its intent to appeal the ruling, how long will this victory last - and will it be the only one? The decision comes amidst a series of protests outside the hotel which started in Mid-July, following the arrest of Ethiopian asylum seeker Hadush Kebatu on suspicion of three sexual offences. 

The Epping protests, which prompted the local council to launch the High Court case, have been running consistently in the area of the Bell Hotel ever since the appearance of Mr Kebatu in Colchester Magistrates Court on July 10th after being arrested on suspicion of three sexual offences against both a local schoolgirl and a separate adult, occurring on the 7th and 8th July. Once the news of the arrest, as well as reports that he had arrived via illegal Channel crossing only eight days prior, reached the media the local response was swift and heated. Two Conservative MPs - Neil Hudson and Alex Burghart - called for the closure of the ‘migrant hotel’, albeit to no avail.

This was quickly backed by the Epping Forest District Council and hundreds of protesters who, by the 17th July, had begun to face off against police forces called to guard the hotel. Despite outbreaks of violence from protesters, confrontations with counter-protests spearheaded by the ‘Stand Up to Racism’ movement and a number of arrests the unrest has continued until now almost without abatement.

But while protests raged around the Bell Hotel another clash over the hotel’s future was being fought in London. With the right-wing of the electorate and a number of right-wing politicians vocalising their support for halting the housing of asylum seekers in the hotel the Epping Forest District Council took the owners of the Bell Hotel, Somani Hotels Ltd, to the High Court of Justice - facing off in a 15th August hearing.

The protests have marked the latest flashpoint in the lingering political conflict over immigration in the United Kingdom and, as expected, the Bell Hotel has provided the perfect rallying point for the British Right - naturally spearheaded by Reform UK. 

While the Home Office attempted to intervene in the case, citing the risk that a potential loss and vacation of the hotel would disrupt the duties of government and Home Secretary Yvette Cooper, the High Court refused to accept any government intervention. On the 19th August the High Court released its ruling: a temporary injunction halting the housing of asylum seekers at the Bell Hotel and mandating the removal of all asylum seekers housed at the site by the 12th September. 

An initial attempt by Somani to appeal the decision was swiftly blocked, but a joint effort by the company and Home Office Representatives will be heard on the 28th August. The protests have marked the latest flashpoint in the lingering political conflict over immigration in the United Kingdom and, as expected, the Bell Hotel has provided the perfect rallying point for the British Right - naturally spearheaded by Reform UK. 

With this new legal precedent set there is little reason to suggest that the momentum is slipping - especially with 18 more councils now seeking similar injunctions – including multiple Labour-run councils. While it is too early to tell, it isn’t a stretch to predict that this momentum will translate into an even greater decline in Labour’s popular support. The Epping protests did not develop into a simple fight against the establishment, with left-wing parties and movements also intervening in support of the right to asylum. In the aftermath of the High Court ruling the co-leader of the Green Party, Carla Denyer, criticised the complacency of the other parties in allowing the growth of the far right. 

While the Epping protests have produced a temporary victory for the British Right and the local electorate the fate of the ‘migrant hotel’, and British immigration policy as a whole, is very much in flux. 

It is hard to argue she is wrong, with far-right individuals with links to Britain First and the English Defence League (EDL) piggy-backing off public unrest from the Epping protests (and a growing list of similar protests) to help found the group ‘Operation Raise the Colours’ - a group whose flag-raising initiative has seen national success, with St George’s flags being hung across towns and cities across the UK with mixed reactions.

While the Epping protests have produced a temporary victory for the British Right and the local electorate the fate of the ‘migrant hotel’, and British immigration policy as a whole, is very much in flux. 

Labour finds itself once more humiliated by Reform UK and the Conservatives find themselves copycatting the party’s doctrine, while those in Britain’s Left criticise Labour for its lack of ideological commitment and effort in combating Reform UK. The recent emergence of Jeremy Corbyn and Zarah Sultana’s new party helps demonstrate the extent of this frustration, and these recent events are almost certain to exacerbate these divides. The nation awaits the results of the appeal hearing on the 28th August to see how this state of affairs will develop once more.

All information is valid as of the 27th August 2025.

Image: AP