Hotel to house asylum seekers
A TWO-STAR, 28-bedroom hotel in Mirfield has been turned into accommodation for asylum seekers.
Metro Inns, on Leeds Road, opposite Miller and Carter is now closed to the public.
Yesterday a Home Office spokesman said: “The Home Office has a statutory obligation to provide asylum seekers who would otherwise be destitute with accommodation and support.
“In response to the unprecedented public health emergency, we have had to house a number of asylum seekers in hotels as a temporary measure.
“We are working with local authorities across the UK to secure the suitable longer-term accommodation that is required and are keeping the measures under review in line with public health guidance.”
A spokesman for contractors Mears said: “Hotel accommodation has been used since March this year across the UK to house asylum seekers as a contingency during Covid-19.
“The decision to use hotel accommodation in Huddersfield was approved by the Home Office.
“Mears has consulted with the local authority and other key local partners to keep them updated.”
Kirklees councillor, Vivien LeesHamilton, (Con, Mirfield), said: “They need to be somewhere safe with a roof over their heads.
“I am a bit worried, however, that the place that has been chosen is somewhat isolated with no shops, medical facilities and poor transport links along the A644.
“It seems to me to be a bit of an odd place. If I was in a strange country I would feel isolated out there.”