AN activist convicted under the Terrorism Act has been condemned after reportedly accosting asylum seekers at an East Kilbride hotel.
Britain First posted a clip on the internet showing two of their members at the Bruce Hotel, which was recently requisitioned by the UK Government and closed to the public.
In the footage, shared hundreds of times on social media, the man repeatedly claims that the hotel is housing “illegal migrants”.
A voiceover in the video, which shows still images of the interior of the hotel, said: "A Britain First team visited the Bruce Hotel in East Kilbride and found it teeming with illegal immigrants from Africa and the Middle East.
"Party leader Paul Golding was almost attacked by an African migrant, who had to be dragged away by hotel security. This is the first of many such migrant hotels in Scotland that Britain First plans to expose."
The Home Office and its private contractor Mears are currently utilising the hotel to help cope with an increased amount of asylum applications. It is one of a number that has been requisitioned to home people across Scotland.
Asylum seekers have been spread across the central belt after six people were stabbed in the Park Inn Hotel in Glasgow’s George Street in June 2020.
The video, shot on the afternoon of June 29, was today slammed by the area's MSP.
Collette Stevenson described the incident as "abhorrent".
She added: "I deplore such hatred in the strongest of terms.
"This despicable behaviour only seeks to warp and divide our society, but it will never succeed."
Golding was convicted of an offence under the Terrorism Act in 2020 after refusing to give police access to his mobile phone on his return to Heathrow Airport from a political trip to Russia.
Mears was contacted about the video footage.
A spokesperson said: “We would encourage responsible media outlets not to give a platform and publicity to far-right and extremist groups or promote online content that includes hate speech.”
A spokesperson for Police Scotland confirmed that officers were called to the Bruce Hotel in relation to allegations two people had approached the entrance of the premises and tried to engage people in conversation.
They added that no arrests had been made.
