A High Court judge has granted Epping Forest District Council its temporary injuction to block asylum seekers from being housed at the Bell Hotel. The hotel's owner, Somani Hotels Limited, must now remove migrants from the site within 14 days. The Home Office previously asked the High Court to intervene in the battle, but was denied.
Mr Justice Eyre said: "It is my assessment that the joinder of the (Home Secretary) is not necessary so the court can determine all matters in dispute in proceedings." The Home Office was not represented at a previous hearing in the case on Friday, but at the start of a hearing on Tuesday, the department asked to be allowed to intervene. Lawyers for the department said granting the injunction "runs the risk of acting as an impetus for further violent protests".
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