Epping residents divided over Kemi Badenoch visit

Residents and business owners of Epping were divided on Kemi Badenoch’s impact following the Tory leader’s visit to the town in the wake of protests over asylum seekers staying at a local hotel.

Tory leader Mrs Badenoch spoke with anti-migrant protesters and people in the high street on Monday.

It follows weeks of protests outside the Bell Hotel, which is hosting migrants, after an asylum seeker was charged with allegedly attempting to kiss a 14-year-old girl.

Parents and concerned residents gathered at the Black Lion Pub to voice concerns over policing, asylum seekers residing in the hotel and counter protesters to Mrs Badenoch.

She then walked down the street to speak with market stallholders and members of the public.

A stallholder called Andy, 75, who spoke with Mrs Badenoch during her visit to Epping, described her as a “nice lady”.

He said: “She seemed a nice lady… educated.

“I think her hands are tied, let’s face it. She’s not in power.

“She can have her point, which is fair play.

“She was asking me about the hotel problem. It can affect trade down here, which I think it has to a certain extent.”

Andy, from Bedfordshire, has run a stall in the high street for 30 years. He said: “It’s good (she came). Someone’s trying to do something about it.”

But a local who spoke with Mrs Badenoch on the high street, who did not wish to be named, said he was unconvinced by the leader of the opposition’s visit.

The man, a grandfather, told the PA news agency: “I do not believe these MPs or the leaders any more.

“They let the people, the young people, down.

“All it is, it’s just a press opportunity: ‘Let’s get our faces out there’.”

When asked if he was happy that Mrs Badenoch had visited, the man responded: “Not really. It’s just phoney blah. It’s about pleasing the press and ‘Look how good I am’ and how it comes across. It’s image management.

“And when you actually get down to the nuts and bolts of it all, nothing is being done. Things are getting worse.

“I worry for my grandchildren, my granddaughters, especially, coming out at school, going on to college.”