A statement from Sean Houlston, Conservative candidate for Sandbach East and Central, following confirmation that the Chimney House Hotel is no longer being used to accommodate asylum seekers:
I welcome the confirmation that the Chimney House Hotel is no longer being used to accommodate asylum seekers. This is good news for Sandbach but I know that residents will still have questions.
However, the continuing uncertainty about what happens to the site next is not good for our town. Chimney House occupies a prominent location and has been part of the local community for many years. Residents deserve clarity about its future, and I hope we now see plans brought forward for a positive and sustainable long-term use rather than the building being left empty.
We must also consider that if the people who were housed at Chimney House have simply been transferred to another hotel or another community, then the underlying problem has not been solved, it has just been moved elsewhere. The Government should be transparent about what has happened and what the next steps are. We need to tackle the national system which has resulted in hotels across the country being used for asylum accommodation in the first place.
The Conservatives have committed to ending the use of asylum hotels altogether as part of a wider programme to reduce the cost of the asylum system. Our BORDERS plan would fundamentally change the way Britain deals with illegal migration.
Under the plan, people who enter the UK illegally would not be able to claim asylum here. Britain would leave the ECHR and ECAT, establish a dedicated removals force and seek to remove illegal arrivals within a week. The immigration tribunal would also be abolished, with stronger returns agreements backed by sanctions against countries which refuse to take back their nationals.
Closing individual asylum hotels is welcome, but it does not solve the underlying problem. We need secure borders, swift removals and a system which provides a genuine deterrent to people attempting to enter Britain illegally.
For our area, the immediate priority must now be getting certainty over the future of Chimney House and seeing the site put back to a productive use that benefits our town.
