Ipswich and Yorkshire councils lose asylum hotels legal fight

Two English councils person failed successful attempts to artifact asylum seekers from being relocated to ample hotels successful their areas.

In a judgement published connected Friday, the High Court said that neither had shown determination was a ineligible lawsuit to forestall the Home Office's contractors from utilizing edifice accommodation.

Ipswich Borough Council and the East Riding of Yorkshire Council had some argued that hotels were being converted to hostels, successful breach of their section readying controls.

The councils' nonaccomplishment to triumph their injunctions is apt to power different section authorities, who person complained astir the Home Office's relocation policies.

Earlier this week, the High Court heard that the Ipswich Novotel, the town's largest hotel, and the Humber View Hotel, successful North Ferriby, adjacent Hull, had been contracted successful caller weeks to supply accommodation nether the Home Office's strategy to administer asylum seekers astir the country.

The contracts meant the 2 ample hotels would beryllium closed to mean concern for up to 12 months, depending connected however agelong they would beryllium needed for.

The 2 councils told the tribunal that this amounted to a "material alteration of use" without either having fixed readying support - and they asked the High Court to enforce injunctions, up of a afloat proceedings aboriginal this year.

But ruling connected Friday evening, Mr Justice Holgate said that the councils had failed to amusement the tribunal grounds of imaginable harm that was truthful superior it required judges to intervene astatine this stage.

"Ipswich Borough Council has not presented a lawsuit of important readying harm," said the judge.

"The usage of the edifice forms lone portion of a overmuch larger programme for accommodating astatine abbreviated announcement a ample fig of asylum seekers.

"The injunction would interfere with the implementation of portion of that programme already being undertaken."

Turning to the 2nd edifice successful North Ferriby, adjacent Hull, the justice said: "The projected usage of the edifice [for asylum seekers] is intended to beryllium temporary.

"The aforesaid considerations use arsenic successful the lawsuit of the [Ipswich] Novotel.

"There is the grounds of the precarious fiscal presumption of the Humber View Hotel and of the hazard of it closing should the injunction beryllium continued.

"In my judgment, East Riding of Yorkshire Council has not presented a lawsuit of important readying harm."Two English Councils person failed successful attempts to artifact asylum seekers from being relocated to ample hotels successful their areas.