A Nottinghamshire MP has said protests outside asylum seeker hotels are 'just human nature'. Lee Anderson, the Conservative MP for Ashfield and Tory Deputy Chairman, told the BBC's Political Thinking podcast recent protests outside of hotels housing asylum seekers were a display of 'human nature', prompted by what he called 'sudden changes' in communities.
The most notable of these protests was in Knowsley in February, where 15 people were arrested after violent clashes injured a police officer and two members of the public, but locally, demonstrations and counter-demonstrations have taken place in Mansfield and Long Eaton. Mr Anderson previously said he would continue naming hotels housing asylum seekers, despite The Refugee Council arguing this was detrimental to Home Office policy intended to guard the safety and privacy of those housed in hotels.
The Daily Mail has reported that speaking to the BBC's Political Thinking podcast, Mr Anderson said: "These aren't far-right extremists, they're just normal family people from some of these towns and villages that are upset that overnight 200 or 300 young men have arrived.
