He called those filming outside a hotel ‘a bunch of attention-seeking agitators’
The Leicestershire hotel has been the subject of false claims(Image: Paul Hartshorn)
False rumours about a Leicestershire hotel are damaging a village and dividing its community, a councillor has warned. Liberal Democrat Paul Hartshorn spoke out after claims were circulated that the Blaby Westfield Hotel is housing asylum seekers.
The councillor, who represents Blaby ward, said he had been inundated with emails from concerned residents over the past week. He said he had initially refrained from posting about the hotel because he didn’t want to fuel “vicious rumours”.
However, Councillor Hartshorn said he felt compelled to address the claims after receiving several more emails. He said the Blaby Westfield Hotel has never housed asylum seekers and that there are no asylum dispersal hotels anywhere within Blaby District.
The councillor described how another local hotel in the area was filmed by what he called “a bunch of attention-seeking agitators who seem more interested in stirring up anger than telling the truth”.
Police were called after what Councillor Hartshorn described as “frightening and intimidating” incidents involving staff and residents at the hotels.
He warned that the spread of rumours online damages the community. Coun Hartshorn said: “All this rumour spreading online does is damage our wonderful village, it hurts local businesses, scares residents, and divides communities.”
It comes after similar claims emerged elsewhere in Leicestershire. Leader of Hinckley & Bosworth Borough Council, Stuart Bray, dismissed rumours about hotels in his borough as “misinformation”, creating “unnecessary fear and division”.
Councillor Bray issued a statement addressing claims that had spread on social media. The rumours suggested hotels in the Hinckley area were housing asylum seekers and that the council has targets for accommodating them, both of which he said are false.
Nationally, the government has pledged to phase out the use of hotels for housing asylum seekers. On Sunday (October 5), Sir Keir Starmer said he hopes to “bring forward” the 2029 deadline set by the Government to close all asylum hotels.
Liberal Democrat Paul Hartshorn
Ministers say hotels will be phased out by cutting small boat crossings and building new government-owned accommodation for asylum seekers. The Prime Minister previously told BBC’s Sunday With Laura Kuenssberg programme: “I’m looking at alternative accommodation and doing everything we can to bring that forward.”
Coun Hartshorn added: “That’s exactly what the far right want: they spread lies and fear so that we turn on each other, then claim they can ‘fix’ the problems they’ve invented.”
The councillor, who has lived in Blaby for over 20 years, appealed to residents not to spread unverified claims.
He said: “This is not the caring, welcoming Blaby I moved to over 20 years ago. We look out for one another, support our local businesses, and don’t spread rumours that harm people and our community. Let’s keep Blaby the kind, supportive village we all know and love.”