Belmont Rural Parish Council Extraordinary Meeting Regarding Asylum Seekers

[Hereford Voice]

Hereford Voice were invited to attend the extraordinary meeting held by Belmont Rural Parish Council at The Left Bank Village last night.

In attendance was Herefordshire Council leader Mr David Hitchener, Jesse Norman's PA, a Superintendent and Inspector with additional officers from West Mercia Police, a representative from Hereford Medical Group and local Councillors. There was no representation from Serco or the hotel.

There was a reasonable turnout of about 100 people in total.

At times the debate got heated as people expressed their concerns and frustrations about Asylum Seekers being accommodated on a full board basis at the Three Counties Hotel on Belmont Road, Hereford.

Some people welcomed the opportunity to give these people Asylum while many others raised some genuine concerns with their questions and worries.

Some people and new councillors also used this as an opportunity for some political point scoring which did not go unnoticed.

The panel were often unable to provide answers to many of the questions being asked and promised to attempt to answer as many over the coming weeks. In fairness, the Home Office have provided very little information.

Hereford Voice suggested to the panel that maybe it would be an idea to call another extraordinary meeting in the coming 6-8 weeks to return with as many answers to these questions as possible. By then the hotel guests will have settled in and the Council and representatives will be in a much better position to respond. Furthermore, MP Jesse Norman and MP Bill Wiggin will have more notice than just the week that they were given to attend.

[Adrian Smith]

Hitchener not Kitchener.

I think many did not turn out due to:

a) apathy

b) seeing it as an already done deal with little chance of influencing anything

c) waiting to see the (probable negative) impacts and effects once the mainly single men with nothing to do with their time arrive.

[Hereford Voice]

11 hours ago, Adrian Smith said:

Hitchener not Kitchener.

I think many did not turn out due to:

a) apathy

b) seeing it as an already done deal with little chance of influencing anything

c) waiting to see the (probable negative) impacts and effects once the mainly single men with nothing to do with their time arrive.

Yes predictive changed it, we have amended it now. 

[bobby47]

My views have changed a great deal. Nowadays I’ve come to the conclusion that there is nothing wrong, bad, racist or bigoted in people simply wanting to promote their own self interests.

Seems to me that the interests of all the people indigenous to this area of Hereford should come first and the interests of the migrants should be secondary. There is nothing wrong in having these thoughts. Sadly, through no fault of our Council leaders, we are now required to do our bit and host people who will add to our already many problems. This arrangement, albeit probably temporary, will do nothing of any good to the local people, the local public services or the local economy.

That said, for the migrants themselves, it probably won’t do them a lot of good either. Holed up in a hotel room with little money to spend in a place they don’t know or possible don’t even like it will hardly be a surprise if we and they encounter problems.

 

[Adrian Smith]

They are definitely here now, as seen a couple of groups of young single ethnic men walking down from Three Counties and Belmont Rd into town today.

[megilleland]

Daily Depress today:

Military families forced from their homes as asylum seekers look set to replace them

EXCLUSIVE: A mother living at an MOD facility said families on the former RAF base had been told to leave, as fencing is erected 100m away 'for asylum seekers'.

Military families living on an historic air base have been told they have to leave their homes, as the Home Office looks set to move asylum seekers onto the former RAF facility in a matter of days.

A source living on MDP Wethersfield told Express.co.uk the deputy head of establishment at the base has informed families that asylum seekers will be brought onto site next week - on April 1.

[bobby47]

All the migrants currently housed at The Three Counties Hotel are now registered with HMG(Hereford Medical Group). A Doctor from this practice recently spent a full day on the premises making themselves available to the people to receive health treatment.

As for funding, my guess is the Government will be paying HMG to administer this. As for registration, and administrative tasks, I’ve absolutely no idea how it’s being done other than to assume that the Home Office have already acquired the details of who is who and passed this information onto HMG.

And so, if anyone here registered at HMG who has experienced any problems getting an appointment, take heart and comfort in the knowledge that your inability to see a Doctor is all in a good cause.

[megilleland]

In the  Daily Depress today:

By RICHARD ASHMORE
15:30, Sat, Mar 25, 2023 | UPDATED: 16:06, Sat, Mar 25, 2023

‘Bored’ asylum seekers say living in £6.8m taxpayer funded hotels is like ‘living in jail’

Nearly 400 hotels are now being used to accommodate more than 51,000 migrants hoping to claim asylum in the UK.

Asylum seekers living in taxpayer-funded hotel rooms across Britain are "bored", upset with the "bad food" and say it’s like "living in jail". Migrants reaching the UK via small boats across the English Channel are frequently sent to hotels which are being turned into refugee centres funded by Government incentives.

It’s estimated it costs the taxpayer £6.8million a day to fund the Home Office scheme which has housed more than 51,000 migrants in around 395 hotels, the Mail Online reports.

A Government announcement is expected in coming weeks for plans to stop the practice in favour of using converted disused military sites.

Home Secretary Suella Braverman has signalled she wishes the "unacceptable" migrant hotel housing scheme to end as the strategy nears maximum capacity and as it does not represent good value for money.

Using hotels has also thrown up controversy in the cities, towns and villages where migrants have replaced guests.