Residents hit out at ‘information vacuum’ over hotel used for asylum seekers – as migrants tell of traumatic journeys
In Altrincham near Manchester asylum seekers are just settling in at the Cresta Court Hotel, many of them just days after making a treacherous journey across the English Channel.
But, as the new arrivals find sanctuary in a northern town, their presence is causing controversy.
The government said it would end the use of hotels for asylum seekers but, without warning, this one has been newly created.
Now young men are huddled in groups outside the hotel drinking coffee or smoking.
Thousands of bookings were suddenly cancelled at the hotel
In Arabic, a Kurdish man in his 20s tells me: “I’ve been here for a few days, and I haven’t faced any hostility since I arrived. In fact, they’ve shown us a lot of respect.”
In contradiction, someone shouts from a passing car: “Get back on the boats!”
About 200 yards down the road people are gathering in a church to air their concerns.
Residents have just learned about the new arrivals, and only because thousands of bookings were suddenly cancelled, along with meetings and even wedding receptions, as the hotel cleared its commitments to make way for the asylum seekers.
“There’s been an information vacuum,” says a mother of two children.
Standing to raise her objections in the public meeting, she asks if the migrants are “illegal” and if so, is the hotel “effectively an open prison” near several local girls’ schools and a nursery?
Her voice shakes as she tells the room she has already cancelled a night out with her girlfriends over safety concerns.
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Local resident Roger Roper was among those who raised objections
‘We don’t know what they are capable of’
Community police officer Colin Dytor says the men’s refugee status is a matter for the Home Office but tries to calm the room.
He adds: “I can assure you we’ve had asylum seekers in Trafford for several years and there has been no spike in crime attributed to these asylum seekers.”
Local resident Roger Roper objects, saying the Britannia Ashley Hotel in Hale the officer is referring to is mostly for migrant families, adding: “This is up to 300 young men. We don’t know anything about them.
“If they don’t have any papers or passports, we don’t know what they are capable of.”
Another woman says she worries about her daughter going out at night, as the men come from a country that “doesn’t value women”.
One woman worries about her daughter’s safety
There is an objection to this point from across the room by two women from a pro-refugee campaign group, but the majority applaud in approval.
The concerned resident continues: “Is there going to be a curfew or are they just going to be able to wander around after seven o’clock? Is my daughter going to be safe? No!”
Inspector Dytor responds: “We can’t just lock people up who haven’t committed a crime. We live in a very tolerant and open society, and we have to continue that.”
Community police officer Colin Dytor tries to reassure residents
‘Some of the comments online have been racist’
Further objections are raised about the cost to the town and the added pressure on already stretched GP services.
A spokesperson for Serco, which runs the hotel, tells us: “No decision has yet been made by the local authority on how healthcare will be provided to those in the hotel.”
Connor Rand, the Labour MP for Altrincham and Sale West, released a statement saying he’s been assured background checks had been done on the men by the Home Office.
Outside the church, protesters hold banners which read “Stand Up to Racism” and “Refugees Welcome in Altrincham.”
A protester who gave her first name as Jane says: “Some of the comments online have been racist. When you are saying refugees should be vetted to make sure they are not paedophiles I think that is racist.”
A pro-refugee campaign group outside the church
‘We’ve just been kept in the dark’
Back inside Gwyneth and Roger Roper say it isn’t racist to raise concerns. The couple had a Ukrainian family in their home for 14 months and say they welcome documented asylum seekers.
Gwyneth is chairperson for the chapel who provided the venue after the town hall was cancelled last minute a few days earlier.
She says: “I can’t say I agree or disagree with what’s going on because we’ve just been kept in the dark and treated like mushrooms.
“It’s wrong of local, central government and the Home Office not to consult us on something that could impact the local community.”
Councillor Nathan Evans, leader of the Trafford Conservative Group, who called the meeting, agrees, saying there has been a “wall of silence” where residents have “genuine concerns”.
He adds: “One hundred to probably 150 people stay in that hotel a night. They all go into Altrincham to spend money. That’s gone from the town. Nobody is going to compensate businesses for that.”
Asylum seekers describe treacherous journeys
Unaware of any local uproar, back at the hotel the new arrivals tell me of treacherous journeys from places such as Syria and Afghanistan.
A Kurdish man describes being trafficked through countries in the back of a lorry not knowing where he was when he got let out.
He says: “Eventually, we arrived at a beach, and the smuggler ordered me to board a boat. When I told him I was afraid of the sea, he slapped me several times. Then he reached for his gun and said, ‘You’re in a safe country now, get on the boat’.”
One young man not wanting to speak on camera says he saw people drown in the channel on his crossing as a nearby dingy sank.
Another asylum seeker, Fahad, tells of panic on his boat as waves started to beat against the vessel packed with 70 migrants, but they pressed on wanting the escape conditions in the French migrant camps.
Asylum seekers outside the Cresta Court Hotel
Heated national debate becomes local issue
The government promised it would end the use of hotels for migrants but blames this move on the Rwanda policy, which halted the asylum claims of people who arrived in the UK on small boats, causing a processing backlog.
While the thousands crossing the channel have caused heated national debate, the residents of Altrincham are learning how that sharpens when it becomes a local issue.
Mr Rand, the local Labour MP, said in a statement he wants to find out people’s concerns about Cresta Court, which is why he organised the public meeting.
He said it’s “not the first time a hotel in our community has needed to be used for this purpose”, pointing to the “huge backlog” in the asylum system and the almost 119,000 asylum seekers waiting for their claims to be decided.
“Labour is committed to a fair and controlled asylum system,” he said, but warned “there are no quick fixes”.
Mr Rand pledged to “continue to meet with Home Office officials and with ministers to push for the claims of those in the Cresta Court Hotel to be processed as quickly as possible, so this situation can be resolved.”
Sir Keir Starmer has said stability in the Middle East is “a priority” following US strikes on Iran’s nuclear facilities, as the world has reacted to the attack.
The prime minister also called on Iran to “return to the negotiating table” to “reach a diplomatic solution to end this crisis”.
Follow latest: Iran considering ‘all options’ after US strikes
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US strikes on Iran explained
In a statement, Sir Keir said: “Iran’s nuclear programme is a grave threat to international security.
“Iran can never be allowed to develop a nuclear weapon, and the US has taken action to alleviate that threat.
“The situation in the Middle East remains volatile and stability in the region is a priority.
“We call on Iran to return to the negotiating table and reach a diplomatic solution to end this crisis.”
The UK was not involved in the strikes but was informed about them in advance by the US, Business Minister Jonathan Reynolds told Sky News’ Sunday Morning with Trevor Phillips.
Sir Keir and Foreign Secretary David Lammy had been pushing for a diplomatic solution. On Thursday, the prime minister warned of a “real risk of escalation” in the conflict.
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Trump: Iran strikes ‘spectacular success’
The US struck three sites in Iran early on Sunday morning, with Donald Trump boasting the country’s key nuclear sites were “completely and fully obliterated” in an address to the nation from the White House and warned there could be further strikes if Iran retaliates.
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What happens next is largely in Iran’s control
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‘Trump’s bold decision will change history’
Netanyahu praises Trump
Israel‘s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu praised Mr Trump for the strikes, saying: “Your bold decision to target Iran’s nuclear facilities with the awesome and righteous might of the United States will change history…
“History will record that President Trump acted to deny the world’s most dangerous regime the world’s most dangerous weapons.”
UN secretary-general ‘gravely alarmed’ by US attack
But UN secretary general Antonio Guterres said he was “gravely alarmed by the use of force” by the US against Iran.
“This is a dangerous escalation in a region already on the edge – and a direct threat to international peace and security. There is a growing risk that this conflict could rapidly get out of control – with catastrophic consequences for civilians, the region, and the world.”
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European Union foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas urged all sides to step back and return to the negotiating table. “Iran must not be allowed to develop a nuclear weapon,” she said in a post on X.
“I urge all sides to step back, return to the negotiating table and prevent further escalation,” she said, adding that EU foreign ministers will discuss the situation tomorrow.
Cuba’s President Miguel Diaz-Canel. Pic: Reuters
How the world reacted to the strikes
Cuba’s President Miguel Diaz-Canel said on X: “We strongly condemn the US bombing of Iran’s nuclear facilities, which constitutes a dangerous escalation of the conflict in the Middle East.
“The aggression seriously violates the UN Charter and international law and plunges humanity into a crisis with irreversible consequences.”
Venezuela’s foreign minister Yvan Gil said his country’s government “condemns US military aggression” and “demands an immediate cessation of hostilities”.
In a statement, an Australian government spokesperson said Iran’s nuclear and ballistic missile programme “has been a threat to international peace and security”.
Japan’s Prime Minister Shigeru Isiba. Pic: Reuters
Japan’s Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba said it is “crucial that there be a quick de-escalation of the conflict”.
Italy’s foreign minister Antonio Tajani said after the attack that his country’s government hopes “a de-escalation can begin and Iran can sit down at the negotiating table”.
The US attack came after more than a week of strikes by Israel, which have significantly degraded Iran’s air defences and offensive missile capabilities, and damaged its nuclear enrichment facilities.
Israel’s strikes on Iran have killed at least 865 people and wounded 3,396 others, according to the Washington-based group Human Rights Activists. The group said of those killed, 365 were civilians and 215 were security force personnel.
Since the local elections Reform UK has had no shortage of good polls.
But a new one suggests Nigel Farage‘s party has a chance not only of winning the next election, but of claiming a decent Commons majority, too.
In February, Reform topped a Sky News/YouGov poll for the first time, with Nigel Farage’s party edging in front on 25%, Labour pushed into second on 24%, with the Tories on 21%.
But a fresh one from Ipsos puts Reform on 34%, nine points ahead of Labour on 25%, with the Conservatives a distant third on 15%.
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Zia Yusuf: I sent a tweet I regretted
While the other parties are flatlining, Reform appears to be pushing boundaries.
Were these figures to be replicated across the country at a general election, with every constituency behaving the same way, then Reform could win as many as 340 seats, giving it a majority of 30, Sky News analysis suggests.
Labour could be reduced to 176 seats, down 236 on last year’s election, while the Tories would hit a record low of 12 seats.
But polling should always be taken with a pinch of salt and with the firm acknowledgement that there is not an election coming any time soon.
Conservative backbenchers might also tell you publicly that opinion polls are notoriously difficult to translate into seat numbers because voting percentages in individual constituencies can vary hugely from the overall average.
But the truth is that the symbolism of Reform UK topping another poll is likely to be noticed by MPs from all parties, especially backbench Conservatives who have actively been hoping their leader, Kemi Badenoch, can help them climb the polls and bring the party back into public favour.
Politics is a brutal game and when it comes to toppling underwhelming party leaders, the Tories are more ruthless than most. One wonders how many of these polls Mrs Badenoch’s party will allow her to endure.
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Reeves takes aim at Reform UK
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This poll is also a warning to Labour.
As the party approaches a year since its major victory, it will not have much to celebrate if these numbers are anything to go by.
According to this survey, only 19% are satisfied with the job Sir Keir Starmer is doing as prime minister, with 73% dissatisfied.
And the figure of 25% of voters intending to vote Labour is a level not seen since October 2019.
While abstract to much of the public, polling can often shape not only the chatter inside Westminster but how and when plots by MPs begin.
For Reform UK, this is a much-needed morale boost after a surprise resignation by their former Chairman Zia Yusuf, and then an almost immediate U-turn back into the party.
And Kemi Badenoch – who said during her leadership campaign that the Conservatives needed to go back to first principles and that this would take time – will be wondering, seven-and-a-half months after winning the leadership, how much time she really has left.
Ipsos interviewed a representative probability sample of 1,180 British adults aged 18+, via the Ipsos UK KnowledgePanel. Data was collected between 30 May-4 June 2025.
The impending ban on protest group Palestine Action has divided opinion – described as both “outrageous” and “long overdue”.
Home Secretary Yvette Cooper is expected to take the step after the group broke into RAF Brize Norton in Oxfordshire on e-scooters and sprayed two Voyager planes with red paint.
The prime minister described the attack as “outrageous” and a rapid review of security at MoD bases is under way.
It was the latest protest in a five-year campaign from Palestine Action (PA) that has targeted arms manufacturers, financial institutions, political figures and government buildings.
Red spray paint has become its signature.
Damage to planes at Brize Norton
On its website, PA says it is a “direct action movement” committed to ending “global participation” in what it calls Israel’s “genocidal and apartheid regime”.
It adds that it uses “disruptive tactics” to target “corporate enablers of the Israeli military-industrial complex”.
Banning the group would make membership of it illegal. It would be treated as a terrorist organisation.
Saeed Taji Farouky, a spokesman for PA, told Sky News that potential proscription was “unfair”, adding that it was “ludicrous” that a “civil society direct action group” could end up on the same list as ISIS.
He added: “It’s not logical, it’s not even consistent with the British legal definition of terrorism, it’s a reaction that’s been taken overnight, with almost no discussion or debate.
“The whole thing is incredibly worrying, mostly for what it means about British law in general, about undermining the very basis of British democracy and the rule of law.”
There are “no circumstances” under which the two people who breached Brize Norton would be handed over to the police, he said.
Singer-songwriter Paloma Faith, who spoke at a pro-Palestine rally in Whitehall in central London on Saturday, told Sky News she was “devastated” by the move.
Paloma Faith spoke at the pro-Palestine rally
“I have met some of the people who have friends in that group. They are young students and they are basically trying to do something because they feel that our government is failing them.”
She added that “everyone” wants to end what she described as a “massacre” in Gaza.
Israel says its military campaign in Gaza is a way of defending itself against Hamas, which killed more than a thousand people in its 7 October attacks and took about 240 people hostage. Hamas-run health authorities claim Israeli attacks have since killed almost 56,000 people in Gaza.
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What’s happening to Palestine Action?
Faith continued: “When you scribble on something, or paint on it, it’s a non-violent protest and it shouldn’t be made at the same level as a violent protest – it is unjust.”
Ben Jamal, director of the Palestine Solidarity Campaign, backed Palestine Action’s use of non-violent protest.
A bank damaged by Palestine Action
He told Sky News: “There has been a place for that in all political movements in history.
“In the struggle for the rights of black people in the US, in the struggle against apartheid in South Africa, in the struggle for women to have the vote, people took forms of non-violent direct action.
“Imagine if we had the current [situation] back in those days – we would have been proscribing the suffragettes, treating them as terrorists.”
There was a pro-Israeli counter-protest in London
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Others have welcomed the move. Lord Walney, who served as the government’s independent adviser on political violence, told Sky News the decision was “long overdue”.
“Palestine Action have acted as the enemy within which is why it’s right, now, to crack down on them,” he said.
“They have terrorised working people for a number of years and there’s a number of serious violent charges that are going through the court system at the moment.”
The UK government is expected to announce its decision early next week.
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