A summary of today's developments
The Home Office won its appeal against the closure of the Bell hotel in Epping for asylum seekers. This means asylum seekers will stay in the lodgings in Essex past 12 September.
In its successful appeal, the Home Office argued removing the men could damage the asylum accommodation system but the government said it still plans to stop using the hotels by the end of this parliament. The council could still be granted another injunction at the full hearing in mid-October.
Epping Forest District council has said “this is not the end of the matter” and they will “continue to fight”.
Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch responded to the court decision by saying Keir Starmer “puts the rights of illegal immigrants above British people”, while shadow justice secretary Robert Jenrick said there is “no acceptable accommodation for illegal migrants”.
In nearby Cheshunt, Hertfordshire, a video posted on YouTube showed dozens of demonstrators behind barriers near the Delta Marriott hotel, which has also been used to house asylum seekers.
Essex police said it was putting a section 60AA order in place in Epping, which gives police the power to ask anyone to remove an item such as a mask that is being used to conceal identity. The order will be in place for 24 hours, the force said. In a post on Facebook, Essex police said: “Throughout the evening, we have monitored a protest in Cheshunt and we now believe a group of people present there are planning to travel to Epping. A number of people involved in that group have been seen wearing facemasks and balaclavas.”
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Deputy PM Angela Rayner should face an ethics inquiry over her tax affairs, the Conservatives said.
The Telegraph newspaper claimed Rayner, who is also the housing secretary, saved £40,000 in stamp duty on a second home she bought in Hove for £800,000.
This was because she removed her name from the deed to a family property in Greater Manchester, the newspaper reported.
However, Rayner also previously suggested the Greater Manchester home remained her primary residence, according to the Telegraph, saving some £2,000 in council tax on her grace and favour home in central London at Admiralty House.
The Conservatives have referred Rayner to the prime minister’s independent adviser on ministers’ interests as a result of the conflicting reports.
The Tories have also written to Tameside council, the authority that covers her Greater Manchester home, asking the authority to strike her from the electoral register if the property is no longer her primary residence.
A Cabinet Office spokesperson said Rayner “has followed advice on the allocation of her official residence at all times”.
A statement provided by the deputy prime minister’s team to the Telegraph said: “The deputy prime minister paid the relevant duty owing on the purchase of the Hove property in line with relevant requirements and entirely properly.
“Any suggestion otherwise is entirely without basis.”
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