Canary Wharf, London

Tensions flared in Canary Wharf on Tuesday night as hundreds gathered to protest the reported use of the Britannia International Hotel to house asylum seekers. The demonstration marked the latest in a series of anti-migrant rallies across the UK.

Just days after thousands gathered outside the Bell Hotel in Epping, Essex, anti-migrant protesters descended on Canary Wharf amid unconfirmed reports of the hotel’s planned use to house asylum seekers. The reports were amplified by Reform UK MP Lee Anderson, who posted a video on X claiming a police commander had told him “the hotel was being prepared to accept asylum seekers.”

While no migrants were visible during the protest, the atmosphere on the ground was tense. One young mother pushing a pram said she was concerned about the hotel’s proximity to a nearby nursery. “We’re trying to protect our children,” she said. It was her first protest.

Many demonstrators declined to be named, but one local scaffolder, Matthew, said he didn’t “want 1,500 more men on the Isle of Dogs.” He expressed fears for children’s safety over the summer holidays and accused the government of losing control. “Where will the next hotel be? We’ll be surrounded soon,” he said, adding that he had been drawn to the protest by posts circulating on social media.

Another local said he believed asylum seekers should be subject to stricter checks. “They need to be vetted because even if five in 100 are dangerous, that’s five of our children who could get hurt.”

Opposite the hotel, a swarm of livestreamers and independent media reporting on events. They surrounded a 17-year-old activist called Young Bob who won applause after calling for deportations and demanding hotel owners stop leasing their properties to the government. He accused Reform UK of breaking its local election pledge to prevent migrants from being housed in areas where they were not wanted, arguing that “constituencies should have the ability to remove migrants.”

Following recent disturbances in Epping, the protest in Canary Wharf marks another chapter in the growing wave of local opposition to the use of hotels for housing asylum seekers. Many residents said they had lost faith in the government and felt compelled to act. As police reinforcements arrived to secure the hotel before nightfall, the crowd gradually began to disperse. But tensions remain high across the country. “I feel there could be a civil war,” warned one.

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Jack Davey is a freelance writer. He writes on Substack.

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