Protests flared across the UK this weekend as anger mounted over the use of hotels to house migrants, with demonstrations held in Norwich, Leeds, Southampton and Nottinghamshire.
In Norwich, hundreds gathered outside the Brook Hotel waving Union Flags and calling for its closure, amid concerns about public safety. Similar scenes were reported in other cities, with more protests expected on Sunday.
A largely peaceful protest in Nottinghamshire briefly turned tense when a group of masked counter-demonstrators carrying Stand Up to Racism placards entered the main crowd. Police stepped in to escort them away without further incident.
Concerns over safety have been fuelled by two high-profile convictions. In April, Dan Tesfalul, an Eritrean, was jailed for eight years for raping a woman in Norwich. Then in June, Yemeni national Rashid Al-Waeli received a 20-month sentence for child sex offences after sending sexual messages to someone he believed was a 14-year-old boy.
Protest with Union flag
Sophie, 20, who did not give her surname, told The Telegraph: “It is absolutely petrifying. Go back to the early 2000s when women would walk home from the pub at night alone. I would not even think about doing that now. You just don’t know who is hiding in a bush and it is getting more and more common. It’s scary.”
Louis Bunn, 26, attended the Norwich protest with a Union Flag, voicing fears about the future of his young daughter. “I am not fascist,” he said. “I am not far-Right. I used to vote for the Labour Party. But please, all of us need to come together. All of us British – white, brown, black, whatever colour you are, whatever faith you are, whatever race you are – you need to come down here and protect our f—ing children, because this is getting mental.”
Demonstrators chanted slogans targeting Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer, while passing cars honked in support. The protest was spearheaded by Armed Forces veterans who camped outside the hotel overnight.
Ian Curry, 58, who served in the Royal Marines, said: “Women and children are not safe in this country. This is what the demonstration was for. Where’s all the money for these hotels coming from? It’s coming from us.”
Callum Creak, 23, added: “You just hear horror story after horror story. It’s despicable stuff and surely it’s right to support shutting the hotels down. It should be a bipartisan issue.”
Epping disorder
In Leeds, demonstrators outside the Britannia Hotel were heard shouting “back in your rubber dinghies” towards asylum seekers. Other protests occurred in Bournemouth, Southampton and Sutton-in-Ashfield, with further demonstrations planned in Epping, Wolverhampton and Altrincham.
In Epping, disorder began earlier in July after an asylum seeker was charged with attempting to kiss a 14-year-old girl. Police have since made 18 arrests and charged seven people in connection with ongoing protests. Epping Forest district council has now called on the Government to close the hotel used for asylum processing.
There were also protests this week at the four-star Britannia Hotel in Canary Wharf, where the Home Office plans to accommodate migrants.
Home Office data from March 2025 shows around 32,000 asylum seekers are currently housed in approximately 210 hotels across the country. Channel crossings have reached record levels this year, with 24,000 arriving so far — a 50 per cent increase.
Norfolk Constabulary confirmed two arrests were made on Saturday in connection with previous protests at the Brook Hotel.