Fury over Labour’s alternative to closure major asylum hotel | UK | News

The government has angered locals after confirming the closure of an Oxfordshire hotel used to house asylum seekers; Critics have warned that plans to move people to nearby military barracks risk creating new problems.

The Oxford Witney Hotel in the leafy market town of Whitney is no longer used as an asylum, the Home Office has announced, making it one of 20 hotels to close across the country.

Ministers instead plan to increase the use of former military facilities housing thousands of refugees, including a facility in nearby Bicester.

Witney’s Liberal Democrat MP Charlie Maynard criticized the move, describing the Bicester proposal as “a poor attempt to copy the Reformation” and warned it was a “recipe for disaster”.

He said: “The government needs to be much more effective at controlling our borders and much faster at processing people coming in.”

Mr Maynard added: “We should take a page from Canada’s book, which has a range of successful programmes, including enabling local communities to sponsor, assist and integrate people more directly.”

Regarding the closure of the Oxford Witney Hotel, he praised the response of local people and organizations who supported those staying there.

“This includes schools, health centres, churches and so many community groups that are doing a great job,” he said.

Home Office figures show there were 124 asylum seekers living in the West Oxfordshire area as of June 30, 2025, with most believed to be housed in the hotel, the Oxford Mail reports.

The use of the site as a shelter has become controversial and has come under criticism from politicians across the political spectrum.

Oxfordshire Conservative leader Liam Walker welcomed confirmation that the hotel was closed.

He said: “This arrangement was never intended to be permanent and many local residents have consistently raised concerns about its impact on the local community and the lack of consultation.”

But Mr Walker argued that relocating asylum seekers to former military sites and multiple occupied homes would not solve wider problems in the asylum system.

He said: “The asylum system is still too slow. The government needs to tackle this by processing claims much more quickly, removing those with no right to stay and ensuring local communities are properly consulted before accommodation is determined.”

West Oxfordshire District Council Labor and Co-operative Group leader Duncan Enright said he hoped the Oxford Witney Hotel could return to welcoming tourists.

“So many jobs and businesses depend on making our visitors feel welcome, and we are a great holiday destination,” he said.

He also thanked local residents for supporting people “fleeing injustice” while arguing that hotel accommodation is never the right long-term solution.

Mr Enright said: “As a result of the Labor Government’s action in just two years, those who are eligible for asylum are now granted permission to remain more quickly and those who do not are returned to their home countries more quickly.

“Labour has vacated half the hotels and will discontinue their use.

“This has been made possible by faster and fairer processing of asylum claims and actions to stop illegal entry, which have led to an 80 per cent drop in net migration.”