Dr Neil Hudson

Two weeks ago in Epping, there were three alleged sexual assaults on school-age girls; my thoughts are with the victims, their families and their peers. These were allegedly linked to the Bell hotel, which has been stood up as an asylum hotel against all advice. Since then, we have had numerous major protests involving hundreds of people, injuries to police officers and damage to police vehicles. People quite rightly have the right to peaceful protest, but these violent scenes are not us. They are not Epping and they are not what we stand for. I want to thank Essex police for all that they are doing to keep us safe in these challenging and distressing times for our town. Following the protests, we have churches cancelling services, businesses closing early and local residents feeling like they are barricaded in their own homes. The hotel is in the wrong place: it is near a school and there is inadequate safeguarding of the hotel’s vulnerable residents. This is a crisis that is boiling over, and for the sake of community safety the Home Secretary and the Government must get a grip of the situation. They must listen and act now to close this hotel immediately. Will they now do that?