A council has won its bid to temporarily block asylum seekers from being housed at a hotel in Essex.
Epping Forest District Council sought an interim High Court injunction to stop migrants from being accommodated at The Bell Hotel in Epping, which is owned by Somani Hotels Limited.
The interim injunction demanded that the hotel be cleared of its occupants within 14 days, but in his ruling on Tuesday, Mr Justice Eyre granted the temporary injunction, while extending the time limit by which it must stop housing asylum seekers to 12 September.
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Police officers ahead of a demonstration outside The Bell Hotel in July. Pic: PA
Somani Hotels said it intended to appeal the decision, its barrister, Piers Riley-Smith, arguing it would set a precedent that could affect “the wider strategy” of housing asylum seekers in hotels.
But the judge turned down the group’s request, saying that he was “not persuaded there is such a compelling reason”.
Somani could still ask the Court of Appeal for the go-ahead to appeal against the judgment.
Council leader, councillor Chris Whitbread, said he was “delighted” at the judgment, calling it “great news for our residents”.
He said the last few weeks have placed “an intolerable strain” on local people, but “for the first time in weeks we can see a chink of light at the end of the tunnel”.
But he warned it was “not the end of the matter”, as the council must now “return to the court and seek a permanent injunction”.
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File pic: PA
Several protests have been held outside the hotel in recent weeks after an asylum seeker housed there was charged with sexually assaulting a 14-year-old girl.
Hadush Gerberslasie Kebatu, 38, was charged with trying to kiss a teenage girl and denies the allegations. He is due to stand trial later this month.
A government attempt to delay the application was rejected by the High Court judge earlier on Tuesday, Home Office barristers arguing the case had “substantial impact” on the Home Secretary, Yvette Cooper, in performing her legal duties to asylum seekers.
Moving asylum seekers in “extremely short order” would cause a “very significant operational burden”, Edward Brown KC, said.
But Mr Justice Eyre dismissed the Home Office’s bid, stating that the department’s involvement was “not necessary”.
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Protesters and counter-demonstrators outside The Bell Hotel in July. Pic: PA
At a hearing last week, the council claimed Somani Hotels breached planning rules because the site is not being used for its intended purpose as a hotel.
Philip Coppel KC, for the council, said the problem was “getting out of hand” and “causing great anxiety” to local people.
He said the hotel “is no more a hotel [to asylum seekers] than a borstal to a young offender”.
Piers Riley-Smith, for Somani Hotels Limited, said a “draconian” injunction would cause “hardship” for those in the hotel, arguing “political views” were not grounds for an injunction to be granted.
He also said contracts to house asylum seekers were a “financial lifeline” for the hotel, which was only 1% full in August 2022, when it was open to paying customers.
The hotel housed migrants from May 2020 to March 2021, then from October 2022 to April 2024, with the council never instigating any formal enforcement proceedings against this use, Mr Riley-Smith said.
They were being placed there again in April 2025 and Mr Riley-Smith said a planning application was not made “having taken advice from the Home Office”.
At the end of the hearing last week, Mr Justice Eyre ordered that Somani Hotels could not “accept any new applications” from asylum seekers to stay at the site until he had made his ruling on the temporary injunction.
Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch called the outcome of the case “a victory for the mums and dads I spoke to in Epping who just want their children to be safe”.
In a message posted on X, the Conservative leader said: “Putting a hotel full of young male illegal immigrants in the middle of a community like Epping was always going to lead to issues. They need to be moved out of the area immediately.”
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Reacting to Tuesday’s judgment, Enver Solomon, chief executive of Refugee Council, said hotels “cost the taxpayer billions, trap people in limbo and are flashpoints in communities”.
He urged ministers to “partner with local councils to provide safe, cost-effective accommodation within communities.
“But ultimately, the only way to end hotel use for good is to resolve asylum applications quickly and accurately so people can either rebuild their lives here or return home with dignity”.
A further hearing on whether the injunction should be made permanent is expected to be held at a later date, and is expected to last two days.
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