Kemi Badenoch is facing mounting criticism after urging Conservative councils to take legal action against the use of hotels to house asylum seekers, a move that opponents branded “hypocritical” given her party’s record on the matter.
In a letter, the Tory leader encouraged councils to follow the example of Epping Forest District Council “if your legal advice supports it.” The Essex authority had just secured a temporary injunction from the High Court to block the use of Epping’s Bell Hotel for asylum seeker accommodation, citing planning grounds.
However, critics described Badenoch’s stance as “desperate and hypocritical nonsense” when set against the backdrop of the Conservatives’ own reliance on hotels during their time in government. At the peak of usage in the summer of 2023, more than 400 hotels were being used to house asylum seekers, with numbers hitting a high of 56,042 at the end of September that year.
On Thursday, shadow home secretary Chris Philp acknowledged that “there should not have been 56,000 people in hotels” under the Conservatives, but nonetheless supported Badenoch’s call for councils to challenge hotel use through legal means.
“Kemi’s letter yesterday [Wednesday] said she would support and encourage Conservative councils to follow what Conservative-led Epping started in fighting the use of asylum hotels, where there is a legal basis to challenge them. What the Epping case has demonstrated is at least some of these asylum hotels the government are using aren’t being done so in accordance with the law. We’re encouraging and supporting Conservative councils to do what Epping has done in standing up for their local communities.”
Chris Philp
Philp also confirmed he had written to Home Secretary Yvette Cooper requesting that asylum seekers moved from the Bell Hotel should not be relocated to another hotel.
School standards minister Cat McKinnell said she could not comment on specific relocation plans but stressed the importance of collaboration with councils.
“I think it’s important the government works really closely with local authorities to manage these circumstances within local communities. We recognise the legitimate concerns and the efforts that local authorities are making to make sure the situation under their locality is appropriate.”
Cat McKinnell
Labour Labels Letter As “Pathetic Stunt”
The issue is widening as councils of various political stripes consider launching their legal challenges. Labour-led Tamworth and Wirral councils, Conservative-led Broxbourne and East Lindsey, and Reform-controlled Staffordshire and West Northamptonshire are among those weighing possible action.
Concerning whether she would support Labour-run councils pursuing similar legal measures, McKinnell replied that it “wasn’t her place” to intervene, calling it “a legal process.”
Labour’s response was swift, with a party spokesperson describing Badenoch’s letter as a “pathetic stunt” and accusing her of hypocrisy. They argued: “This is desperate and hypocritical nonsense from the architects of the broken asylum system.” The spokesperson added that there are now “20,000 fewer asylum seekers in hotels than at their peak under the Tories.”
The Bell Hotel in Epping has a history of being used for asylum accommodation, having first hosted asylum seekers briefly in 2020 and then again between 2022 and 2024.
According to Home Office figures published Thursday, the number of asylum seekers in hotels has edged down slightly, from 32,345 in March this year to 32,059 in June. Yet over the last 12 months under Labour’s first year in government, the overall figure has risen from 29,585—a climb of 8 percent.
The debate underscores the political sensitivities around asylum housing, with Badenoch’s call igniting renewed tensions over the use of temporary accommodation and the government’s broader handling of migration.
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