Piddington women lobby Parliament over migrant housing plans

Summarised from 2 outlets · Updated 14 Oct, 16:44 · Archive

Women from the Oxfordshire village of Piddington have come to Parliament to oppose Home Office plans to house 1,256 male asylum seekers at a former RAF base near their homes.

Residents of Piddington, an Oxfordshire village of around 400 people, are campaigning against Home Office plans to house 1,256 male asylum seekers at a nearby former Ministry of Defence site in Bicester. The village held a symbolic referendum last month to leave the UK in protest at the proposal. Women from Piddington attended Parliament on Wednesday as MPs debated the plans during an Opposition Day motion tabled by the Conservatives.

The campaign has centred on safety concerns. Shadow Equalities Minister Joy Morrissey, addressing the Commons, said the undocumented migrants waiting for asylum decisions would be 'wandering these villages'. She told MPs the village women's concerns reflected broader worries from women across the UK about migrant accommodation in their communities. She stated it was unsafe for women and girls and that the government should be forced to make a clear choice on the issue.

The Piddington women attended the debate in the Commons gallery. Morrissey noted that the Labour benches had not met with the residents themselves, so the Conservative benches had brought them to Parliament instead.

How it is being reported

• Piddington women attend Parliament as Tories continue protest against Labour plans to house 1,200 male migrants near tiny Oxfordshire villageThe Government wants to accommodate 1,256 male asylum seekers at a former Ministry of Defence (MoD) site in Bicester.Daily Mail · 14 Oct, 16:34
• Piddington women descend on Westminster as they take fight to Andy Burnham's doorstepA group of Piddington women fighting against plans to house migrants in an old RAF base have descended on Westminster ahead of Parliament's debate. Residents in the sleepy Oxfordshire village held a symbolic referendum last month to leave the UK in protest at a Home Office plan to house up to 1,256 male asylum seekers at the nearby former MoD Bicester. The women of the village, which has a female population around 133, raised concerns over the undocumented male migrants being allowed to come and go as they please - just next door to their homes. Now, speaking to GB News, Joy Morrissey, the…GB News · 14 Oct, 13:58

In this story: Piddington · Bicester · Oxfordshire · Ministry of Defence · Joy Morrissey · Parliament

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