STANDISH: Protests
Members of the community gathered in Market Place, Standish to take part in a protest against plans to accommodate asylum seekers at Standish hotel Kilhey Court, at the same time a counter protest was held by Wigan Stand Up to Racism.
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NewsTranscript
00:00 Refugees are welcome here!
00:02 Hands up! Stay clear!
00:04 Refugees are welcome here!
00:06 We're all refugees!
00:08 I'm David Hassick from Wigan's Stand Up To Racism
00:11 and we're here in Standish this morning to demonstrate that
00:15 regardless of any genuine concerns that people might have
00:18 about the change of use of killing at the court
00:21 then the language that's being used to whip up division and hatred
00:24 within our town will not be tolerated there
00:26 and we will organise wherever anybody attempts to exploit that
00:29 and take advantage of vulnerable people in society
00:32 whether that's refugees, asylum seekers
00:35 or the workers at the hotel whose jobs have been placed at risk
00:37 by the cynical exploitation of Macdonald Group.
00:39 We're here to engage with as many people in the community as possible
00:42 to have dialogue with them, to make sure that they understand
00:45 we share their concerns, we stand in solidarity with any workers
00:48 whose jobs are at risk.
00:50 We just want to make the point that whatever happens here
00:53 anyone that does end up being housed in Wigan and Standish
00:56 they will have our support, we will stand by them
00:59 we won't allow them to be abused, exploited and scapegoated.
01:02 Hi, my name's Moira Byrne and I'm a local councillor for Inks and Schools.
01:16 I was contacted a couple of weeks ago by some Standish residents
01:20 who were concerned when they heard that Kelly Court was being closed down
01:23 people were losing their jobs and it was going to be used to house asylum seekers.
01:28 They were very concerned because we already have a hotel
01:31 on the other side of Standish, the Britannia, housing 200 young men
01:34 and they're really worried about another maybe 200 young men
01:38 unvetted, unchecked, coming and living in the village.
01:41 It's not sustainable.
01:43 The services in Wigan, health services, the hospitals are massively overstretched.
01:48 I'm trying to help people at the moment struggling to get housing
01:51 people at risk of eviction, families like I've got mothers and children
01:55 in a travel lodge all in one room, probably the other side of Wigan from the school.
02:00 No wonder people are resentful.
02:02 We're not blaming, in a way, those young men for not choosing to be housed there
02:07 but we are blaming the government, McDonald's, hotels, Serco
02:12 because this has become a big money-making thing.
02:15 We really just want, we're not racist, we're not prejudiced against anyone
02:19 we just want our village to be safe, our children to be safe.
02:22 We don't know who these men are and we don't know where they've come from.
02:26 No one's consulted with us or asked us about anything.
02:29 It's just imposed on us.
02:30 This protest, all it is, is for people, the residents of Standish and Wigan
02:34 to peacefully protest and stand up and give their views on the situation
02:39 so people are free, when I've done a little speech, to stand up and say how they feel
02:44 how they feel this will impact on their lives and how they really want the council
02:49 to fight it like they have done in Bolton and Chorley and try to stop this.
02:53 It's a totally unsuitable place. It's up the road, there's no shops nearby.
02:57 What are those young men going to do? How long are they going to be there?
03:01 What's the future plan? Nobody's told us anything.