Council barred from appealing High Court ruling on asylum seeker hotel
A council has been ruled unable to appeal a High Court decision that permitted asylum seekers to remain housed at a hotel in Essex.
Epping Forest District Council sought to challenge the ruling concerning The Bell Hotel at the Court of Appeal, contending that the hotel's owner had violated planning regulations.
The Conservative-led council had expended £566,000 in legal costs fighting the case since August, according to a BBC report on Tuesday.
During the summer of 2025, thousands protested outside The Bell Hotel in Epping following the arrest and subsequent imprisonment of a migrant residing there for sexual offences, including crimes against a 14-year-old girl.
Court of Appeal judges emphasized the public interest in the hotel continuing to provide accommodation for asylum seekers, stating it was necessary to address the ongoing demand.
In response to the ruling, council leader Chris Whitbread informed the BBC that no further legal action would be pursued.
Legal representatives for the council had accused Somani Hotels Ltd, the owner of The Bell Hotel, of "sidestepping" planning laws by accommodating asylum seekers at the site.
However, in November, Mr Justice Mould ruled there was a "continuing need" to house migrants with pending asylum applications to enable the Home Secretary to fulfill statutory duties.
He further stated that imposing an injunction would not be "an appropriate means of enforcing planning control."
In the ruling issued on Friday, Lady Justice Andrews and Lord Justice Holgate noted that Mr Justice Mould had thoroughly considered the effects of protests and community tensions in Epping.
"We are not concerned with the merits of government policy in relation to the provision of accommodation for asylum seekers, in hotels or otherwise.
Such matters are for ministers and Parliament, not the court, even if they give rise to public concern, controversy or protest."
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