Labour abandon plans to house dozens of asylum seekers in £250K properties in Stoke Heath

Labour has abandoned plans to house dozens of asylum seekers in Stoke Heath's "Migrant Street".

Mark Pritchard, the Conservative MP for The Wrekin, has confirmed the Government will not go forward with plans to move migrants into the home.

The scrapping of the plan to house 83 illegal migrants in the new-build homes came after protestations from local residents, Shropshire Council, and Mr Pritchard himself.

He said on social media: "Just received a call from the Asylum Minister confirming following my 'extensive representations' the Government is scrapping all plans to house asylum seekers in Stoke Heath.

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"This is a victory for common sense, the local community, and hard parliamentary representation."

One family which already had moved into a new-build home had already been relocated.

Shropshire Council also confirmed that, after a review, the Home Office had withdrawn the Dutton Close area from the Asylum Dispersal Programme.

The council said it recognised the "strength of feeling" and "significant impact" within the local area and beyond.

Heather Kidd, leader of Shropshire Council, said: "We welcome this announcement and the Home Office decision on this matter as we have been clear and consistent in our discussions with both the Home Office and Serco that we did not believe Dutton Close was a suitable location for this type of accommodation."

She thanked local residents, the parish council, and elected members for the "constructive way they have raised concerns and worked with us during a difficult and sensitive situation".

The scrapped plans followed a local meeting held by Mr Pritchard with more than 100 members of the public.

The MP for The Wrekin had invited representatives from the Home Office and Serco to attend the meeting, but neither appeared.

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One resident at the meeting, Emma, said many felt in the dark about the scheme.

She told the BBC: "I don't feel like the true infrastructure has been assessed property, there is zero for anybody without a car around here.

"I just don't think the thought process has fully been there."

And Mark Gilbert, of Stoke on Tern Parish Council said: "When people are brought into the area that you don't know anything about their culture, where they've come from, or anything about them, and it's done in such a way that causes people to become nervous, so the lack of communication has been a problem."

The Home Office said Shabana Mahmood had introduced "robust processes to ensure new build sites like Stoke Heath can never be considered again".

It added that the Stoke Heath development had been identified before the new guidance was brought in.

In a previous statement, a Serco spokesman said: "We work under the direction of the Home Office, who decide where people are placed, based on overall national demand.

"The Home Office determines how many people are to be accommodated in each local authority area and instruct us accordingly."

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