A Winchester hotel could soon be used entirely to house asylum seekers.
Local MP Steve Brine has been told the Home Office is in discussions with the owners of the Winchester Royal Hotel in St Peter Street.
If approved, the families, who are from countries such as Iran, Iraq and Eritrea, will move into the Winchester Royal Hotel on potentially a nine-month basis while they go through the process of applying for right to remain in the UK.
Asylum seekers, unlike refugees, have not been formally recognised as having a right to live in the country they are being housed. They have usually fled their home country due to violence or persecution.
The Home Office has held a series of meetings to formalise the agreement - which would see all 160 beds filled - and has been in contact with both Winchester City and Hampshire County Council. The police and other agencies have also been informed as the city's services prepare to welcome asylum seekers from as early as Friday, September 30.
However staff at the St Peter Street establishment said they were unaware of the impending move and Castlebridge Hospitality, the company which owns and runs the Winchester Royal, has so far failed to comment. It currently manages seven hotels, including the Holiday Inn Winchester.
Winchester & Chandler's Ford MP, Steve Brine, said: “This will come as quite a shock to many residents as it was to me.
“Clearly Winchester has shown, with Hong Kong nationals, Afghans and of course our Ukrainian friends, it’s rightly got a big heart when it comes to welcoming people to our city in their hour of need but this is on a completely different scale and we have to recognise that if this goes ahead as mooted.
“It will challenge some people deeply, as principle and reality collide, but there are serious practical questions around the impact on local public services and especially city tourism given the loss of available hotel rooms the use of this hotel will bring about. The impact of that this Christmas - and various graduation ceremonies in the spring - come to mind.
“Obviously the owners of the Winchester Royal Hotel have indicated they’re willingness to be part of this and no doubt they will have done a risk versus reward calculation of where this leaves them in the long-term.”
