The hotel in London has seen days of protests and counter-protests.
Women and children dressed in pink have placed themselves outside the Britannia Hotel. (Image: George Cracknell Wright)
A peaceful women and children’s protest outside the Britannia Hotel in London has been crashed by masked men who set off flares outside the suspected migrant hotel. Men believed to be asylum seekers were filmed walking into the hotel off a bus in the early hours of Saturday, with the video clip showing them holding what seemed to be brown envelopes and wearing similar clothing. Protestors also clashed with men who tried to leave the hotel on motorbikes on Sunday morning. One person has been arrested on suspicion of assaulting an emergency worker during the demonstration and police have issued a 28-day dispersal
A spokesperson for Tower Hamlets Council said on July 22: “We are aware of the Government’s decision to use the Britannia Hotel in Canary Wharf to provide temporary accommodation for asylum seekers. It is important that the Government ensures that there is a full package of support for those staying at the hotel. We are working with the Home Office and partners to make sure that all necessary safety and safeguarding arrangements are in place.”
The Metropolitan Police Service has released a statement via its offical X account that says protests outside the Britannia Hotel, which is thought to house migrants, are not subject to restrictions.
Met Police deny rumours of ‘banning protests’ outside Canary Wharf hotel
Police have not banned protests outside the Britannia Hotel in Canary Wharf, contrary to online rumours, it has been confirmed.
A spokesperson for the Met said: “We have not banned protests outside the Britannia International Hotel.
“Officers policed a protest for a considerable time today but a group remained who were harassing occupants of the hotel and staff, trying to prevent people accessing the hotel to make deliveries and making concerted efforts to breach the fencing and access the hotel.
“Their actions went well beyond protest to harassment and we used powers under the Criminal Justice and Police Act 2011 to order that specific group to leave and not return for 28 days.
“If a different group wishes to protest in the vicinity of the hotel, they are not banned from doing so, providing they do so lawfully.”
A ‘specific group’ of protestors have been banned from the area around the hotel for 28 days (Image: Getty)
Two more arrests made over Epping hotel disorder
Two men have been charged in connection with disorder outside the Bell Hotel in Essex following recent protests outside the migrant accommodation.
It brings the total number of people charged by the Crown Prosectuon Services after protests in Epping to 11.
Charlie Land, 23, has been charged with violent disorder and criminal damage and Luke Fleming, 21, has been charged with violent disorder. They will appear at Chelmsford Magistrates’ Court on Monday.
The charges follow weeks of protests outside the Essex hotel (Image: Getty)
Protest outside Bell Hotel ends peacefully
The demonstration held outside the Bell Hotel in Essex tonight has ended peacefully, according to online reports.
Police previously ordered protestors to disassemble from a designated area opposite the hotel by 8:30pm.
What are the police restrictions on tonight’s protest in Essex?
Essex Police have placed a number of restrictions on the demonstration currently underway outside the Bell Hotel in Epping.
The force has ordered that the protest should finish by 8:30pm and must be limited to designated areas outside the building.
They have also introduced requirements on the removal of face coverings until 3am on Monday and have the power to direct anyone committing or suspected of committing anti-social behaviour to leave the area until 8am on Monday.
Police have introduced a number of restrictions on the protest underway in Essex (Image: Getty)
Protestors wave England flags outside Essex hotel
Dozens of people have gathered outside the Bell Hotel in Essex this evening for a peaceful protest against the building’s taxpayer-funded use to house asylum seekers.
Videos from the demonstration show people waving England flags in a fenced-off area opposite the hotel. GB News broadcaster Adam Brooks, who is at the scene, said he was told by organisers that they will continue staging weekly protests until the migrant accommodation is closed.
‘Heavy police presence’ at the Bell Hotel
Essex locals say there is a heavy police presence outside the Bell Hotel in Epping this evening as a planned protest gets underway.
Officers previously warned that public order restrictions were in place, including the requirement that all protesting finish by 8:30pm and that demonstrators remain in a designated area opposite the hotel.
Essex Police said investigations into incidents linked to previous protests are ongoing, in particular on July 17, which “saw a small number of offenders resort to violence against police officers and property”.
“So far, 14 people have been charged and a total of 25 people have been arrested in connection with this disorder,” a spokesperson said.
“Among those is a 21-year-old man from Buckhurst Hill, who is currently in custody and arrested on suspicion of violent disorder.
“Those protesting peacefully about issues which are important to them are free to lawfully do so.
“However, we will deal robustly and quickly with anyone intent on coming into Epping to commit criminal behaviour.
“We police impartially, without fear or favour, and have legal responsibilities to protect those who want to exercise their rights peacefully.”
Numerous protests have been held outside the hotel since July 14 (Image: Getty)
Protest kicks off outside Essex migrant hotel
Demonstrators are gathering outside the Bell Hotel in Epping for a planned protest this evening.
Multiple protests have been held outside the hotel since July 13, after an asylum seeker was charged with allegedy attempting to kiss a 14-year-old girl.
Uber Eats driver ‘chased away’ from hotel by protestors
An Uber Eats delivery driver was blocked from accessing the Britannia Hotel in Canary Wharf by protestors after attempting to deliver food to someone in the building.
“He was chased away by protestors, who began shouting at him and blocking his way,” Jack Hadfield, who is at the scene, says.
Man arrested on suspicion of assaulting emergency worker
A man has been arrested at the protest outside the Britannia Hotel on suspicion of assaulting an emergency worker.
The Metropolitan Police said: “One man was arrested on suspicion of assaulting an emergency worker after an officer was pushed. He was taken into custody.”
The man was arrested after a police officer was pushed, the force says (Image: Getty)
Tensions re-erupt between police and protestors
Police have been filmed yelling at protestors to “get back” before bundling a man into a van outside the Britannia Hotel. Officers appeared to push people out of the way while transporting the man to the police vehicle, before it pulled away.
Caution: The accompanying video contains strong language
No arrests outside Britannia Hotel, police say
Officers intervened after flares were set off in the crowd of protestors gathered outside the Britannia Hotel in Canary Wharf today, but no arrests were made, the Metropolitan Police force has confirmed.
A spokesperson said: “Officers are deployed in the vicinity of the Britannia International Hotel in Canary Wharf this afternoon where a protest is taking place.
“At one point, officers intervened after flares were let off in the crowd. Several people were searched. No further flares were found and there were no arrests.
“Officers remain in the area to provide reassurance to local residents and businesses, to ensure that any further protest takes place peacefully, and to respond to any incidents.”
Police intervened after flares were set off near the migrant hotel (Image: Getty)
Tory MP calls for Essex migrant hotel closure ahead of protest
Neil Hudson, Tory MP for Epping Forest, has reiterated calls for the Bell Hotel – currently being used to house asylum seekers in the Essex town – to be closed.
“Out again this afternoon in Epping … Knocking on doors, talking to local residents and businesses,” he said in a post on X. “With Epping Forest District Council and the Police, Fire and Crime Commissioner, I continue to call on the Government to act urgently and close this hotel.”
A peaceful demonstration outside the migrant accommodation is planned for 6pm this evening. Essex Police previously said that 14 people have been charged in connection with recent protests at the site, and there have been 23 arrests.
A number of protests have been held outside the Essex hotel in recent weeks (Image: Getty)
Birds eye view as police respond to protest escalation
Officers have been captured on video moving quickly in response to an escalation of the demonstration outside Britannia Hotel in Canary Wharf today – appearing to make at least one arrest after a group of masked men joined dozens of women and children gathered outside the building, which is reportedly being used as asylum seeker accommodation.
‘It’s about time people woke up’, local mum says
A protestor called Theresa is speaking outside the Britannia Hotel, urging others to “wake up before it’s too late” and pressure the Government against housing asylum seekers in taxpayer-funded accommodation.
She says her son has been told he’ll never be able to afford a house “while migrants are getting four meals a day, clothes vouchers and food vouchers”.
‘I went to a migrant hotel protest – one thing left me feeling completely hopeless’
Express reporter Adam Toms was at the scene of the protest outside the Britannia Hotel on Sunday morning and spoke to the people there.
“It seems that the idea of providing migrants with free accommodation in their communities is stretching locals’ tolerance just a little bit too far across the country,” he writes.
Protestors began gathering outside the hotel at around 8:30am (Image: Adam Toms)
When did asylum seekers move into Canary Wharf hotel?
A bus-load of individuals suspected to be asylum seekers arrived at the Britannia Hotel in Canary Wharf early on Saturday morning.
It came after Tower Hamlets Council confirmed that the Government intends to use the 500-room building to house migrants while their claims are processed – angering protestors, who gathered outside the east London hotel yesterday and today.
Protests outside the hotel are ongoing this afternoon (Image: PA)
Demonstrators chant ‘send them home’ after spotting migrants inside hotel
People gathered outside the Britannia Hotel have begun chanting “send them home” after spotting what appears to be asylum seekers moving around inside the building.
Huge crowd outside Canary Wharf hotel as protest ‘calms down’
Tensions between demonstrators and police outside the Britannia Hotel appear to have died down as the women and children’s protest staged outside the migrant accommodation has merged with a bigger planned event for this afternoon.
A group of men who arrived at the scene in balaclavas and tussled with police after setting off smoke canisters have “filtered into the crowd”, online reports suggest.
Police prepare for Essex protest this evening
Essex Police has issued a public safety order ahead of a planned demonstration outside an asylum seeker hotel in Epping this evening.
The force says all protest activity must finish by 8:30pm and any public assembly outside the Bell Hotel must take place in a designated area directly opposite the building.
Officers will also have powers to require that demonstrators remove any face coverings and leave the area if they are engaging in or suspected of engaging in anti-social behaviour.
Anyone who does not comply with the orders is likely to be arrested, the force has warned. They will apply across the town, including Epping underground station.
“We have seen the vast majority of people attending these protests doing so peacefully, in areas we have cordoned for their safety and to allow the people of Epping to carry on their daily lives,” Assistant Chief Constable Stuart Hooper said.
“As I have said before, anyone disrupting the public or peaceful protest will be robustly dealt with.”
Officers will have the power to require people to remove face coverings in the above area (Image: Essex Police)
Masked men ‘not Antifa’
The masked men arrested by police outside the Britannia Hotel this afternoon were not members of Antifa, an eyewitness at the scene says.
Jack Hadfield, who caught officers making the arrests on camera and shared the footage on X, said: “At least two of the men have since been de-arrested and allowed to join the protest, sans masks.
“To clarify, these were NOT Antifa. After masks were removed, I recognised a few of the men from previous protests here, and [they] were cheered by the protestors when they arrived.”
‘Save our kids and women’, say locals
Protestors are waving English flags calling for increased protection for children and women outside the Britannia Hotel as demonstrations against taxpayer-funded accommodation for asylum seekers spread across the country.
The wave of recent action was sparked by an asylum seeker being charged with sexual assault after allegedly attempting to kiss a 14-year-old schoolgirl near a migrant hotel in Epping, Essex. Hadush Gerberslasie Kebatu, 38, denied the charge and will stand trial later this month.
The crowd of women and children gathered in Canary Wharf this afternoon (Image: George Cracknell Wright)
Lee Anderson blames ‘Antifa’ for escalation of protest
Reform UK MP Lee Anderson has alleged that a group of masked protestors who have joined a women and children’s demonstration outside the Britannia Hotel in Canary Wharf are members of ‘Antifa’ (short for ‘anti-fascist’), a loosely affiliated collection of activists known for its militant opposition to right-wing ideology.
“Credit to the police for acting quickly to chase this filth from our streets,” he said in a post on X.
The political allegiances of the masked demonstrators has not been independentally verified.
Masked men discharge smoke canisters
Young men in balaclavas have begun discharging coloured smoke canisters outside the hotel, according to reports.
Police appear to be trying to prevent the new arrivals from joining the women and children’s protest by blocking them off through a line of officers between the two groups.
Anti-migrant demonstrators clash with police
Masked protestors have clashed with police near the Britannia Hotel after gathering in defiance of the Government’s plans to house asylum seekers in the east London accommodation.
Photos from the scene show officers holding a demonstrator to the ground and gathering around others outside the hotel.
The Metropolitan Police has been contacted to confirm whether any arrests have been made.
Demonstrators have gathered outside the east London hotel this afternoon (Image: George Cracknell Wright)
People are reportedly blocking off the nearby road and discharging flares (Image: George Cracknell Wright)
Protestors break into song outside hotel
Demonstrators camped outside the Britannia Hotel in Canary Wharf have broken into a rendinition of Sweet Caroline, videos shared on social media show.
A large group of women and children has gathered outside the hotel this afternoon following reports that asylum seekers were moved into the Docklands accommodation in the early hours of Saturday morning.
Men on motorbikes stopped from exiting hotel
Video footage shared online earlier showed two people on motorbikes trying to drive out of a ring of fencing around the Britannia Hotel in Canary Wharf, which has seen anti-migrant and counter-protests outside.
Security opens a gap, before men outside the building attempt to close the fencing and keep the individuals from getting out.
Both vehicles have L plates and appear to have containers attached to their rear.
This led to the person recording the clip to claim they were working illegally as delivery drivers. “Tell me these ain’t delivery drivers, guys,” he said.
This claim hasn’t been verified.
Read the full story here.
Protesters do the conga
Jack Hadfield at the scene reported on X: “Mums and kids have now started doing the conga and the hokey cokey outside of the Britannia Hotel asylum centre in Canary Wharf.
“The atmosphere is one of joyful defiance and rebellion, with a community joined together against illegal migration.”
‘Stop the boats!’
People outside the hotel are blowing whistles and shouting “stop the boats!”
Chris Rose said on X: “The large protest of brave mothers outside of the Britannia hotel in Canary Wharf, are now sat on the pavement and road chanting “stop the boats!”
“Absolutely agree with them. Government(s) have let women and girls down.”
Locals ‘boo at hotel residents’
Locals outside the hotel are booing people going in and out of the hotel, according to a report from the scene.
Jack Hadfield said on X: “‘Residents’ of the Britannia Hotel in Canary Wharf are moving in and out of the asylum centre, while the women’s and children’s protest is going on.
“As soon as they’re spotted, the crowd immediately greets them with boos.”
