Asylum Seekers Nearly Force Elderly Out Of Home

An elderly couple from the UK had just moved into their new home which cost them £200,000 but were shocked when they received a letter from their council suggesting they could be forced to sell it (compulsory purchase) and used to house asylum seekers.

That is what Jose and Ted Saunders were faced with just this month!

The elderly couple were “insulted and shocked” upon receipt of the letter from North Northamptonshire Council that stated their home was deemed to be “derelict” and the council could force them to sell it.

“’The idea of forcing us to sell it to make room for refugees and asylum seekers seems totally wrong,” said homeowner Jose (76), “We moved to Rushden to help provide childcare for my grand-daughter and found this nice little place to live.”

“I couldn’t believe it.”

“It was all the more worrying as we’d only moved in last November, so we still hadn’t received the deeds for the house.”

The letter states:

“The Government has identified empty privately-owned properties as a potential cause of blight within communities, and as a wasted resource at time of high housing need.”

According to the council’s letter, there is a “considerable increase” in those being awarded asylum in the country (predominantly single men) and how they are “struggling” to find accommodations for them.

To be clear, this a government issue, not an issue of the citizens of a nation to find resolution to. Governments get to determine how many people to allow into a country and if there is no clear capacity or infrastructure to provide for them (aka housing) then governments have an obligation to ensure provisions for their citizens first and not asylum seekers (however controversial this may be).

The letter continued:

“The ideal long-term solution would be to provide accommodation by using empty properties which would benefit owners and the project.”

The council even went so far as to make the statement that they could make a compulsory purchase order on the property! This is truly astonishing.

Upon inquiring with the council regarding the situation, the couple received a letter of apology which read that the council’s staff had mistakenly ear-marked the property for possible compulsory purchase.

Utterly shocked and surprised by the policy, homeowner Jose commented, “What on earth is the council doing forcing people to sell their houses – and even an empty house is owned by someone – so that asylum seekers can live in them?”

“The answer to this is to stop them coming in the first place, not to force people out of their homes.”

A similar situation is unfolding across the United States where, in a move to address the housing needs of illegal aliens, state governments are asking citizens to help house those who are invading the nation through her Southern Border.

One such state is Michigan, who has introduced the “Newcomer Rental Subsidy” program which offers homeowners $500 a month to provide shelter to individuals outside of state shelters. The initiative is aimed at refugees and various groups of migrants and illegal aliens and seeks to alleviate housing and integration challenges.

Ben Habib, Deputy Leader of the Reform UK Party commented on the situation saying:

“I was horrified to hear the plight of Mr. & Mrs. Saunders, but my horror could not compare to what they experienced last month.”

“They were served with a letter from North Northamptonshire District Council seeking to possess their home,” Habib told the MailOnline, “The accusation made was their home was derelict and the Council intended to use it to house single young men seeking asylum. Known to the rest of us as illegal migrants.”

“I can confirm their home is most certainly not derelict. It was well appointed and cared for. They were distraught by the threat made by the Council. They feared not having title deeds and being incapable of defending their position. It was not until they visited the Council and after much pleading they managed to get the Council to desist.”

“It is utterly shocking that the Council would fire off a letter like that to two elderly people. And do so with the aim of buying a £200,000 house for asylum seekers. This from a Council that is as good as bust and has never filed consolidated accounts since it was established in 2021.”

“The local charity for homeless people, the Daylight Centre, spends £650 per head per homeless person per year. Think what that charity could do with £200,000! It would be able to provide care for over 300 British citizens.”

“There are also veterans’ charities in the constituency struggling to care of soldiers who risked life and limb for the country. Instead of the money going to them, the Council was prepared to blow it on housing maybe 4 migrants, after forcing out of their home two elderly British citizens. Disgraceful.”

Compulsory Purchase Orders aren’t used to kick homeowners out of their homes but are a tool of last resort to fill a gap in housing.

According to the Leader of the North Northamptonshire Council, Jason Smithers, “The “empty property initiative letters” were sent out in a bid to assist empty property owners to bring their property back into use, and on the whole, the support from NNC was gratefully received. Since NNC formed in 2021, no properties have been purchased by CPO. This is a mechanism of last resort to bring problematic, long term empty properties back into use.”

“Unfortunately, in this case, records held by NNC were outdated, and the letter was incorrectly sent to a property which was occupied. For this I am very sorry for causing any undue distress and worry.”

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