The Government has been criticised for “putting the rights of illegal immigrants above the rights of British people” after it won a court challenge which means asylum seekers can continue to be housed at an Essex hotel.
Somani Hotels, which owns the Bell Hotel in Epping, and the Home Office challenged a High Court ruling which would have stopped 138 asylum seekers being housed there beyond September 12.
In a ruling last week, Mr Justice Eyre granted Epping Forest District Council (EFDC) an interim injunction after the authority claimed that Somani Hotels had breached planning rules by using the Bell as accommodation for asylum seekers.
But ministers were criticised for challenging the move, and Tory leader Kemi Badenoch said: “Local communities should not pay the price for Labour’s total failure on illegal immigration.
My statement on the Epping migrant hotel injunction decision. pic.twitter.com/FjWYvLgHcO
— Kemi Badenoch (@KemiBadenoch) August 29, 2025
“Keir Starmer has shown that he puts the rights of illegal immigrants above the rights of British people who just want to feel safe in their towns and communities.”
She called on Conservative councils to continue to seek similar injunctions against asylum hotels in their areas.
After the ruling last week, several councils run by Labour, Conservatives and Reform had announced their intention to consider similar legal action.
Senior Conservative James Cleverly suggested that the Home Office was cutting local people out of the loop, adding: “I’m sure that Yvette Cooper and the Home Office officials think this is good news. It really isn’t.”
Reacting to the ruling, Home Office minister Dame Angela Eagle said the Government was committed to closing all asylum hotels by the end of this Parliament, but added that it appealed against the High Court ruling so that hotel use can be ended in a “controlled and orderly way”.
Three Court of Appeal judges ruled in favour of Somani Hotels and the Home Office on Friday, saying that Mr Justice Eyre’s ruling was “seriously flawed in principle”.
Reading a summary of the ruling overturning the injunction, Lord Justice Bean, sitting with Lady Justice Nicola Davies and Lord Justice Cobb, said: “We conclude that the judge made a number of errors in principle, which undermine this decision.”
He continued: “The judge’s approach ignores the obvious consequence that the closure of one site means capacity needs to be identified elsewhere in the system.”
He added that such an injunction “may incentivise” other councils to take steps similar to those taken by EFDC.