"With its donkey rides, historical grand pier and long sandy beach, Weston-super-Mare is a quintessential Victorian seaside resort; busy with ice-cream toting crowds in the summer but imbued with the laidback charm of a town that moves at a slower pace. But in the last few months, the town has become deeply divided over a proposal to become a council of sanctuary, a project designed to improve efficiencies in the provision of support for refugees and asylum seekers."
"Supporters of the scheme have said that Reform campaign was riddled with misinformation and led to a U-turn by the town's council just six months after it had voted in favour. The charity behind the project, City of Sanctuary UK (CoS), said it was the first time that had happened in England. Reform which has no elected councillors in the North Somerset town"
Weston-super-Mare is a Victorian seaside resort with donkey rides, a grand pier and a long sandy beach that attracts ice-cream toting summer crowds while retaining a laidback pace. The town became deeply divided after a proposal to become a council of sanctuary aimed to improve efficiencies in support for refugees and asylum seekers. Reform UK launched a prolific social media campaign against the plans, alleging a surge in illegal immigrants and diversion of taxpayer money. City of Sanctuary UK and scheme supporters strongly refuted those claims and said the campaign prompted a council U-turn. Heated protests followed and councillors who supported the scheme received abusive correspondence. The council of sanctuary award links up local authorities, costs a town council 150 a year for the three-year award, and does not influence Home Office decisions on placements.
#weston-super-mare #council-of-sanctuary #refugees-and-asylum-seekers #misinformation-and-political-campaigning
Read at www.theguardian.com
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