At his first meeting as new Tory leader Cllr Diogo Rodrigues led his seventh cavalry directly into a no man’s land they couldn’t get out of. And not even the ReformUK councillors they were seeking to impress came to their aid. This week the Tories changed leaders on county. Cllr Rodrigues (Con, Bridgwater East) first appearance on BBC West at the weekend saw him speaking out on the issue of immigration. In a presumably ‘coincidental’ move, his Tory MP Ashley Fox (Con Bridgwater) raised the matter in Parliament claiming Somerset was being allocated ‘too many’ refugees in a letter to Home Secretary Yvette Cooper clearly entitled “Asylum Accommodation in Somerset’, and then at the County Council meeting today the Tories even put a motion attempting to connect housing pressures in Somerset with the issue of refugees and displaced persons. The ruling Group led by their Housing spokesperson Cllr Sarah Wakefield (Lib Dem, Blackdown) rounded on the Tories for their ‘disgraceful’ motion, ‘dividing and scapegoating’ people while Labour group leader Leigh Redman (Bridgwater North, Labour) also laid into the Tories and simply stated the facts of miniscule measures of refugees in Somerset while pointing the real finger at the Tories themselves. When the vote was put the Tories were isolated with even the 2 Reform UK members joining with the LibDems, Labour, Greens and the Independents in voting the motion down.
The Tory Motion Hits the Fan
The Tory motion proposed by cllr Lucy Trimnell (Con Wincanton) and seconded by Cllr Diogo Rodrigues. Talked of ‘severe and growing pressures on social housing and the private rental sector in Somerset’ saying that ‘ Existing demand is already being driven up by major infrastructure projects such as Hinkley Point C and the Gravity Enterprise Zone’ However, it then went on to say ,”…Somerset is playing a role in national resettlement and asylum schemes, with government targets placing additional housing pressures on the county. For example, Somerset has been allocated 826 asylum accommodation bedspaces—the third highest target in the South West—while also planning for arrivals under the Afghan Resettlement Programme.While the Council is committed to supporting vulnerable displaced people through ring[1]fenced government funding, we must also be honest about the strain this places on the wider housing system and public services, which are under considerable pressure.” It then called on the Council to “Write to the Secretary of State …. and seek urgent assurances that government-funded migration accommodation schemes will not come at the expense of housing provision for Somerset residents”.
Lib Dems Respond
Cllr Sarah Wakefield (Lib Dem Blackdown) summed up the case against the motion calling it “Wrong and ill conceived” Then setting out the facts. “The Government sets quotas based on population and homelessness figures. Not county. It’s simply not true that it’s displaced people to blame. Really the facts are this 1. 18,000 homes are being held up in the planning process 2. There has been a slowing down of the completion of houses since Brexit 3. High interest rates after Trussonomics have exacerbated this. 4 The Planning regulations have put pressure on developers. None of these are to do with displaced persons. There’s other factors. Hinkley yes has taken homes and driven up costs-again nothing to do with displaced.1There are 2,734 people seeking homes and just 2.19% of them are displaced persons.”
Cllr Wakefield continued “Displaced persons are placed in private properties sourced by the government -hostel and HMO recently as they are seeking to move them out of hotels. And these are people fleeing wars and oppressive regimes! We have a long and proud history of welcoming asylum seekers. If they are granted leave to remain, only then can they find work and then they can contribute. So why this motion? There’s no point to write to the government as their quotas are already done. Furthermore we DO prioritise somerset residents. They must be local or have a local connection. This motion is a cynical attempt to pander to those seeking to make immigration a key issue. I prefer to quote Michelle Obama, ‘when they go low we go high’. We are proud of what we do. We welcome you!”
Reform ‘has a pop’
The motion was then debated across the floor for an hour. Two Tory councillors recently formed a Reform UK group. Of 2. One of them, Cllr Marcus Barr (Wellington ReformUK) immediately rose to speak directly to the topic of immigration saying “Im all for immigration if it’s controlled. But it’s not controlled. ReformUK are leading in the polls and that’s because the Great British public are annoyed with Labour, Conservatives and Liberals because we’ve got to have controlled immigration! I know this motion won’t get passed and you may laugh but in 2 years time the majority of you people over there (pointing at the Libdems) won’t get re-elected ‘cos you’re not listening to the people of somerset!”
Lib Dems shouted back “We get elected to help people!”
Liberals Put the Boot in
Cllr Habib Farbahi (Lib Dem, Comeytrowe) called the motion “Double standards” saying it “Promotes division, undermines human dignity. Instead we should be focusing on housing solutions instead of scapegoating.”
Cllr Mike Stanton (Lib Dem, Langport) said “ This just mouths populist dogma. It’s mean spirited from the Conservative party and they should be deeply ashamed if any of them vote for it.”
Cllr Tom Deakin (Lib Dem, Taunton North) said he was “Firmly against it. It’s dangerous divisive. Asylum seekers and refugees are NOT to blame. It’s based on fear, distraction and shifting the blame from where it belongs. And that’s Government failures to invest. This started with sell off of housing stock by Thatcher and a housing market that just benefits developers not working people. There have been choices. Choices to sell off council housing, choices to cut funding to local government. There should have been choices to build the homes people need, to bring in fair rents etc. Solidarity and compassion should define our politics!”
As tensions rose and Tories floundered Lib Dem cllr Val Keitch (Lib Dem Ilminster) described it as “ a racist motion.” allowing former Tory leader Cllr David Fothergill (Con,Monkton) to ask “…if this is a racist motion-why was it allowed onto council papers and not withdrawn?”
Monitoring Officer Alyn Jones confirmed the motion ‘met the criteria for a motion’
The Debate winds (everybody) Up…
Cllr Fothergill eagerly pushed for a quick vote to stop further debate. The Tories were getting a drubbing. That however didn’t stop Reform wading in again. Cllr Barr intervened “There’s divisions going on all across the country. Blame the media. Reform controls 10 councils and there’s a lot of confusion. Please move to a vote.”
He wasn’t helping his case..
Cllr Rodrigues attempted to calm the room down ..by trying to blame the Lib Dems… for stoking division by “interpreting the motion as racist “ and then going on to try to give the example of “..a single mother in Bridgwater with her five kids who had been evicted and was in temporary accommodation because there wasn’t enough homes” But then brought it back to topic by mentioning a “..16% rise in homelessness and 826 asylum spaces”. And then, to a chorus of boos , mentioned that “ Sir Ashley Fox has written to the Home secretary saying this allocation is too high and risks adding further pressure to housing market.”
The room erupted again with Cllr Butt Phillips (Lib Dem ,Wells) shouting “We’re not scapegoating foreigners!” Cllr Trimnell (Con) responding “Seems like any mention of migration is taboo then!” (Lib Dem shouts of ‘shameful!’) (Marcus Barr pleading “Please can we go to the vote..please…?”)
Labour Sets Things Straight
It was down to Labour Leader Cllr Leigh Redman (Labour, Bridgwater North) to steer a clear course for everyone “This Council’s concern for Somerset’s housing pressures is understandable, I must challenge the assumptions and implications underpinning this motion.The motion implies that government-funded migration and asylum accommodation schemes are a primary source of strain on Somerset’s housing market. While failing to recognise the previous governments chronic underinvestment in social housing and insufficient regulation of the private rental sector. However, when you couple this with the impact of Hinkley C it is clear, that these have all contributed far more significantly to the current crisis. In Fact Evidence from the Local Government Association and housing charities consistently shows that the scale of housing need in Somerset – and across the UK – predates recent migration and resettlement programmes.”
Cllr Redman continued “By framing asylum seekers and resettled families as a source of competition for local housing, this motion risks fuelling division and further misunderstanding within our communities. The numbers involved locally in resettlement schemes are a tiny fraction of overall housing demand here in Somerset. Moreover, the government’s ring-fenced funding for these programmes is specifically designed to prevent displacement of local need. We have heard already that these families are not able to access our Home finder system. Somerset, like every part of the UK, has legal and moral obligations to support vulnerable refugees and asylum seekers. These are people fleeing conflict, persecution, and hardship. Prioritising local residents “wherever legally and practically possible” risks undermining our commitments under national and international law, and could expose the Council to legal challenge.”
“Rather than seeking to limit or stigmatise migration accommodation, the Council should focus its lobbying efforts on securing increased long-term investment in affordable housing for all.
This could mean:-
- Finding ways to use the new governments funding, and getting EDF to provide mitigation for their long over due worker uplift, this funding can be used to support new social and affordable homes here in Somerset;
- Supporting policies that regulate and improve the private rental sector;
- Working collaboratively with neighbouring authorities and voluntary organisations to ensure fair and humane treatment for all residents, including newcomers.Cllr Redman concluded “Let us be clear: Somerset’s housing crisis is real, but it will not be solved by pitting vulnerable groups against one another. We need unity and ambition, not division and scapegoating.I urge the Council to reject this motion and instead champion a positive, inclusive vision for Somerset’s future.”
The motion was put and the Tories were isolated with Lib Dems, Labour, Greens, independents….and even the 2 ReformUKers voting against.
Well done Leigh for introducing common sense and compassion into this debate and for the part the Labour group played in defeating this nasty ill-conceived motion!