Sir Gavin Williamson CBE MP writes to Yvette Cooper as Labour re-open the Roman Way Hotel in Staffordshire for asylum seekers
November 15th, 2024
Sir Gavin Williamson CBE MP has taken to X to complain about Labour's decision to begin using the Roman Way Hotel to house asylum seekers again. The hotel is in Watling Street, A5, Staffordshire.
Sir Williamson posted:
Disappointed and angry that the Home Office are using the Roman Way Hotel to house asylum seekers again after I successfully campaigned to stop its use. We were only informed last night, and it will go back into use tomorrow. The disrespect for my constituents is astounding.
Sir Williamson's letter to Yvette Cooper in full:
The Rt Hon Yvette Cooper MP
Secretary of State for the Home Department
2 Marsham Street
London
SWIP 4DF
14th November 2024
Dear Yvette,
I am writing to express my utter shock and dismay that the Government has decided to once again allow the Roman Way Hotel (Watling Street, A5, Staffordshire) to be used as accommodation to house asylum seekers.
The Government claims the decision was made due to "challenges across the system", but the lack of a credible deterrent following the scrapping of the Rwanda scheme is creating unnecessary additional capacity on the whole system.
The Government also add that hotels to be used as asylum-seeker accommodation is needed to clear "tens of thousands of cases in the asylum-backlog." But independent statistics show the previous Conservative Government cleared the legacy asylum backlog in 2023 by processing 112,138 cases - thus saving the taxpayer millions of pounds on expensive hotel costs.
I believe the Government has demonstrated utter disregard and total contempt for my constituents, and I understand the anger and total frustration shared by residents who will be impacted by these plans.
Hotels are not suitable places for asylum seekers as they reduce the offering of places for people to stay therefore, affecting local tourism which subsequently has a direct impact on the local economy.
I look forward to hearing a firm timeframe as to when the Roman Way Hotel will no longer be used for housing asylum-seekers.
Yours sincerely,
Rt. Hon. Sir Gavin Williamson CBE MP
Member of Parliament for Stone, Great Wyrley and Penkridge
https://twitter.com/GavinWilliamson/status/1857073895926358248
