At least five people were arrested after angry activists who descended on a hotel housing asylum seekers in Falkirk on Saturday were met by hundreds of counter-protesters.

Both sides engaged in personal abuse and hurling threats and police separated both groups behind barriers.

Two anti-asylum groups marched to the Crowne Plaza in Stockley Road and a group of men in masks attempted to enter the building through the rear entrance, damaging security fences, the Metropolitan Police said.

Other protesters moved towards the nearby Novotel on Cherry Lane and a Holiday Inn.

Officers enforced cordons in the area to prevent a breach of the peace and arrested three people.

Two officers suffered minor injuries and two more arrests were made as police dispersed the crowd.

Euan Stainbank, Scottish Labour MP for Falkirk, a place that has seen protests, said the current asylum system was not working for anyone.

He said: “We must fix the broken asylum system which has not worked for years – for communities such as Falkirk, and for those seeking refuge from persecution.

“The Labour Government’s actions, within days of entering office, to end the Tories’ Rwanda scheme, focus resources on processing claims and ending needless processing pauses will allow us to close all the Tory-created asylum hotels during this Parliament.

“Further action, which I voted for – such as blocking refugee status for those convicted of a sexual offence – have been taken forward in the Border Security, Asylum and Immigration Bill, which was opposed by the Tories and Reform.”

Five people have been arrested at a protest in west London where a group of masked men attempted to enter a hotel, the Metropolitan Police have said.

At around noon on Saturday, two anti-asylum groups marched to the Crowne Plaza in Stockley Road and a group of men in masks attempted to enter the building through the rear entrance, damaging security fences, the force said.

Other protesters moved towards the nearby Novotel on Cherry Lane and a Holiday Inn.

Officers enforced cordons in the area to prevent a breach of the peace and three arrests were made, police said.

Two officers suffered minor injuries and two more arrests were made as police dispersed the crowd, the force added.

A Section 35 dispersal order has been put in place, allowing officers to direct people to leave the area and not return if they suspect they may cause disorder, police said.

Commander Adam Slonecki, in charge of policing London this weekend, said: “Around 500 protesters were in the area, but most people have now dispersed from the immediate vicinity. However, further arrests will be made if we need to tackle disorder.”

Just hours after a court ruling allowed for the Bell Hotel to continue housing asylum seekers, a smiling migrant was caught giving protesters the middle finger.

Standing in a window at the Roundhouse hotel in Bournemouth, Dorset, the man was grinning while raising his finger to the hundreds of demonstrators outside before he was led away.

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The UK and France are trialling a scheme that will see migrants arriving on small boats sent back to France in exchange for an asylum seeker being sent from the continent on a legal route.

The agreement has been criticised as being inconsequential by some and has done little to quell the anger felt by those taking to the streets outside hotels across the country.

The numbers involved in the pilot scheme are likely to represent a small fraction of those who arrive, a figure which stands at 29,003 so far in 2025, a record for this point in a year.

Council leader Chris Whitbread told the BBC: “We’re looking at all the options, including looking to appeal to the Supreme Court.

“The judgment yesterday was just so deeply disappointing that we just need that time over the weekend to review what the judgment actually means, take on board all the legal advice that we’re getting, and then moving forward from there.”

At least 13 other councils are considering pressing ahead with legal action over the use of asylum hotels in their areas, according to The Times.

Among them are several Labour-run authorities, the newspaper said.

Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch urged Tory councils to pursue such legal action.

“Keir Starmer has shown that he puts the rights of illegal immigrants above the rights of British people who just want to feel safe in their towns and communities,” Mrs Badenoch said.

Mr Farage claimed the Government had “used ECHR against the people of Epping”.

Lord Falconer said the Government was right to take the Epping case to the Court of Appeal but that people wanted action to close asylum hotels, as Labour has promised to do by the time of the next general election.

He rejected suggestions the UK may have to pull out of the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR) to be able to efficiently remove people with no right to be in the country.

Lord Falconer, who served under former prime minister Sir Tony Blair, told BBC Radio 4’s Today: “We’ve obviously got to move forward in relation to closing the hotels and also stopping the crossings.”

If the Epping injunction had not been overturned on Friday, some 138 asylum seekers would no longer have been able to be housed there beyond September 12.

The case could have had wider ramifications as more than 200 hotels are being used to house asylum seekers – not all of whom will have arrived on small boats – around the country.

Lord Falconer said: “The Government always has the burden of doing what’s possible and the Government is doing the right thing in relation to it, but there’s a lot more to do, and if we don’t, as a government, do it, then you’ll see those opinion polls raised yet further for Reform, because they don’t have the burden of having to be practical.

“But the country wants some action in relation to it.”

Sir Keir Starmer has promised small boat migrants will be “detained and sent back” as he faced mounting pressure to show results on tackling English Channel crossings and ending the use of asylum hotels.

The number of migrants crossing the Channel in small boats remains at a record high for this point in a year and small-scale protests continued over the use of hotels to house asylum seekers.

Labour former lord chancellor Lord Falconer warned his party that support for Reform UK would continue to grow unless the Government is able to show results on tackling the problem.

In a social media post, Sir Keir said: “I am clear: we will not reward illegal entry. If you cross the Channel unlawfully, you will be detained and sent back.”

Angry activists who descended on a Falkirk hotel have been met by hundreds of counter protesters.

Two separate demonstrations were called by the Save Our Future and Our Kids Futures group in the town on Saturday, amid fears of local people about alleged crimes linked to those housed at the Cladhan Hotel.

The first saw hundreds gather outside the office of Labour MP Euan Stainbank, where speeches were made, and people took aim at the UK Government, the police and journalists who were covering the protest.

More than 200 later assembled outside the nearby Cladhan Hotel, which is believed to house asylum seekers waiting for their claims to be processed.

The group, which was bolstered by a steady stream of people coming from the previous demonstration, was met by about 200 counter-protesters from the trade union movement and the campaign group Stand Up To Racism.

Exchanges quickly became tense, as both sides engaged in personal abuse and threats were hurled.

Police separated both sides behind barriers, with the counter protesters in what appeared to be a car park for the hotel and the protesters on the opposite pavement.

The protest is the second in as many weeks outside the Cladhan Hotel.

In Oldham Anti-racist supporter Alice Hopkinson, 28, said: “I am here because I am really concerned about rise of racism. I live in the town and I have been threatened and intimated while walking down the street plenty of times but never from a refugee.

“Everyone has a right to life and to feel safe. These people are fleeing from the most horrific places and have experienced the most unimaginable tragedies.”

Just hours after a court ruling allowed for the Bell Hotel to continue housing asylum seekers, a smiling migrant was caught giving protesters the middle finger.

Standing in a window at the Roundhouse hotel in Bournemouth, Dorset, the man was grinning while raising his finger to the hundreds of demonstrators outside before he was led away.

The hotel is being used to house asylum seekers, and it is one of three in Bournemouth to do so. Around 200 peaceful protesters gathered on Friday calling for the establishments to stop housing migrants.

Two men have been charged following a protest on Friday night in Epping, Essex Police said.

Ross Ellis, 49, of Orchard Croft, Harlow, has been charged with failing to provide a specimen and was appearing at Chelmsford Magistrates’ Court on Saturday.

Jimmy Hillard, 52, of Chequers Road, Loughton, has been charged with assaulting an emergency worker and is due to appear at Chelmsford Magistrates’ Court on Monday.

A third man arrested on suspicion of violent disorder remains in custody.

Assistant Chief Constable Glen Pavelin said: “As I said last night, the right to protest does not include a right to commit crime and we’ve worked very closely with our Crown Prosecution Service colleagues overnight to secure these charges, and the cases will now proceed through the court system appropriately.

“To our residents in Epping, you will continue to see a policing presence in the area throughout this afternoon and into this evening.”

Migrants living at the Bell Hotel in Epping have “thanked” prime minister Keir Starmer after a controversial court ruling allowed them to remain there.

He told the Telegraph: “I want to say thank you to Keir Starmer and his government.

“I am delighted with the news, wow. That is really amazing.”

At least thirteen local authorities across all parties are following Epping’s lead in seeking an injunction, The Times reports. This includes Reform UK councils, such as West Northamptonshire and Staffordshire.

At least four Labour-run councils are doing the same, including Wirral, Stevenage, Tamworth and Rushmoor authorities.

Conservative leader of Broxbourne council Corina Gander said her authority was continuing with its legal bid, as is Spelthorne council in Surrey.

Protesters and counter-protesters have turned up in Oldham, Greater Manchester. The opposing groups are being separated by police and kept on different sides of the road.

Demonstrators against the use of hotels for migrants are waving British flags, while the other group, largely from Stand up To Racism, are holding placards which say “refugees are welcome here”.

Protesters have turned up at the Bell Hotel in Epping for a second day in a row. Only a handful are there at the moment who are carrying a Union Jack and St Georges flags.

Matt Wood, who is currently at the protest in Hanley, told StokeOnTrentLive: “They’re shouting racism at us, but we’re not racist. We just love our children and there are demographic issues – statistically and logically – that we should understand.

“Complete diversity is not a strength. It does bring problems to the UK and those do need to be addressed. But it doesn’t need to be addressed with racism or hatred – it needs to be addressed in the Middle East. Wars supported by the UK, the US and NATO.

“I love people from all walks of life, but this town isn’t what it was 10 or 20 years ago. There are political and social problems going on and people recognise that. People just want a nice place to live, and I think both sides are justified in that.”

A group of local residents gathered outside of the Bell Hotel on Friday following the court ruling.

Richard Brace, 60, a carer for a relative who has lived in the Essex town all his life took to the streets in protest of the ruling on Friday. “We’ll keep protesting,” he told the Express.

“Whether it’s going to change anyone’s mind is another matter. But we will be here every Thursday and Sunday, and whatever days in between.”

There will “definitely” be civil disorder, the local said. “I’ve got a feeling this is the way we’re heading.”

Carmen, who wore a pink top that said “Pink Ladies Say, The Only Way is Epping, Send Them Home” on it, also attended the demonstration. She said “today’s ruling is just devastating, absolutely devastating. It will probably cause civil unrest”.

“It’s shocking, it’s like they’ve won. The schools go back next week – the kids will be walking around the back, it’s not good,” she added.

On Friday, three senior judges ruled that Yvette Cooper’s department can intervene in the case related to a temporary injunction concerning the the Bell Hotel.

Somani Hotels, which owns the property, and the Home Office sought to challenge a High Court ruling which would have prevented 138 asylum seekers from being housed there beyond September 12.

On Friday, Lord Justice Bean, sitting with Lady Justice Nicola Davies and Lord Justice Cobb, said that Mr Justice Eyre made an “erroneous” decision not to let the department be involved. Reading a summary of their decision, Lord Justice Bean said the Home Office had a “constitutional role relating to public safety” and was affected by the issues.

He continued: “The judge’s approach ignores the obvious consequence that the closure of one site means capacity needs to be identified elsewhere in the system.”

Residents have begun protesting outside the Best Western Plus Stoke-on-Trent City Centre Hotel, in Trinity Street.

There are about 20 protestors and around 60 counter-protestors currently in attendance, StokeonTrentLive reports.

One protester said: “My main concern is for the women and the children. And all of our veterans being left on the streets.”

Meanwhile, counter-demonstrators are holding signs which say “stop the far-right” and “refugees are welcome here”.

In response to the court ruling on Friday, one migrant in his 30s told The Telegraph: “I am pleased. It had been a worry.”

This comes after the Home Office won a legal appeal allowing the Bell Hotel to continue to house the 138 asylum seekers living there.

However, the mood among residents stood in stark contrast.

Carmen, who wore a pink top that said “Pink Ladies Say, The Only Way is Epping, Send Them Home” on it, said: “Today’s ruling is just devastating, absolutely devastating. It will probably cause civil unrest.

“It’s shocking, it’s like they’ve won. The schools go back next week – the kids will be walking around the back, it’s not good.”

Read the full story here.

Three men were arrested in Epping after locals took to the street in protest last night. They were arrested on suspicion of violent disorder, assaulting a police officer and drink driving.

Assistant chief constable Glen Pavelin said: “Protest is a democratic right, and we’ll always do all we can to facilitate that, for every group seeking to make their voice heard.

“The overwhelming majority of people in Epping tonight clearly wanted their voices to be heard and they did that safely and without the need for a police response.

“However, the right to protest does not include a right to commit crime and tonight a small number of people were arrested. Two officers sustained injuries which are thankfully not serious.

“Officers will remain in the area in the coming hours to ensure the dispersal order which remains in place is adhered to.”

Protests against the use of migrant hotels are planned across several towns and cities in the UK today including Braintree, Luton, Nottingham, Portsmouth, Stockport and Barry.

Counter-protests from Stand up To Racism are also planned in Swindon, Leeds, Skegness and Newcastle.