The Home Office Must Listen To Epping
5 min read
The government must listen to Epping, close the Bell Hotel, and stop extremists exploiting local concerns.
As a lifelong resident of Epping and a local councillor, I stand with our community in calling for the immediate and permanent closure of the Bell Hotel as asylum accommodation.
On Thursday night, I brought a motion to Full Council demanding that the government listen and close the hotel. It passed unanimously. Councillors from all political groups spoke with one voice. Our message to the Home Office could not be clearer: the Bell Hotel must close, and it must close now.
Epping Forest District Council has consistently and firmly objected to the use of this hotel. That opposition is not nimbyism. It is rooted in long-standing and genuine concerns about the impact on our town, our public services, and the safety of local people.
The Bell Hotel was first repurposed for asylum accommodation in 2020, at this time it was housing families, women and children. Even then, the location was completely inappropriate. After years of opposition from the council and the public, it was finally closed in April 2024.
But earlier this year, without consultation or warning, the Home Office reopened it. This time, it was used exclusively to house single adult males. Meanwhile, another asylum hotel is still in operation just a few miles away. Epping Forest has already taken more than its fair share. The strain on local services is unsustainable and deeply unfair.
Local people are angry. And rightly so. This anger was exacerbated when a resident of the Bell Hotel was charged with sexual assault after allegedly trying to kiss a 14-year-old girl. Just months earlier, another was arrested for arson.
There is no transparency, no consultation and no accountability from the government. Local people and the local authority are being kept in the dark about who is living a few steps away from them, the local school and the high street.
These protests may start peacefully, but they are attracting people who come to provoke, frighten and exploit
In recent weeks, Epping has become the epicentre of national debates and frustration about the UK’s illegal immigration crisis. But this is not just about one town. Across the country, communities are being left to deal with the fallout of a broken system, which successive governments have failed to get a grip on. This is a national failure, and it is local people who are paying the price.
Sadly, local frustration and fears are being exploited. A small minority of extremists on the left and right are now hijacking protests to spread hatred and division.
I have spoken to many residents who want the Bell Hotel closed, but they do not want protests disrupting daily life in our town. These protests may start peacefully, but they are attracting people who come to provoke, frighten and exploit.
Epping Forest District has had a difficult past with far-right politics. Not long ago, BNP councillors sat in our council chamber. Only in 2023 did the electorate see off Julian Leppert of the extreme right ‘For Britain’ Party. These people are still here. They are organised. And they have seen the terrible events of recent weeks as an opportunity.
For some time, I have expressed concern about one individual representing himself community activist named Callum Barker, who is from Epping. He organises litter picks, attends meetings, and posts friendly content in Facebook groups. "I am a good person locally, I do lots of stuff to help out," he said in an interview with Times Radio at the Epping protest this week. But behind his carefully curated image could lie something far more sinister. Callum is accused of having long-standing ties to Patriotic Alternative, a white nationalist group described this week by The Times as once Britain's dominant far-right organisation. Hope Not Hate has documented his involvement in extremist circles.
He is accused of being a current member of the Homeland Party, a fascist offshoot of Patriotic Alternative, and remains politically affiliated with them. He has been a lead organiser of the protests. The Times reported that he was the administrator of a Facebook group called Epping Says, which members have used to plan recent protests. He has been dubbed “The Lion of Epping.” But if people knew the truth about his beliefs and affiliations, I doubt they would be so quick to share his videos or follow his lead.
Locally, Reform UK are courting these same extremists. One Reform councillor recently marched with protesters, including a former BNP councillor, and led them to the council offices. There, he labelled every councillor a “pig” with their “snouts in the trough.” This language is incitement, straight out of the BNP handbook, and reeks of desperation to build a political profile at any cost.
The likes of the BNP, Patriotic Alternative and Homeland are not just people with strong views. They are embedded in extremist networks, using genuine public concern to build influence. I feel we have a civic duty to call out what these people stand for. My grandfather’s generation stood up to fascism in world war. We must ensure extremists are not allowed to hijack local anger and turn it into something dangerous and destructive. Ultimately, this undermines our legitimate local concerns and our clear message to close the hotel.
As councillors, we must press for change through calm, democratic, diplomatic and legal means. We must act with integrity and with facts. We should not stoke tensions or stand alongside those who seek only to divide us.
Epping is at a tipping point. The government is acting recklessly and irresponsibly by ignoring our community. This is about public safety. It is about fairness. And it is about the fundamental right of a community to be respected, heard, and protected. We have been ignored for too long, and that neglect has created space for extremists to step in and exploit local anger for their own agenda. Enough is enough. The government must act now to close the Bell Hotel and restore trust before more damage is done.
Holly Whitbread is a Conservative councillor in Epping Forest.
