Children asylum seekers in UK govt-run hotel racially abused, sold to criminal gangs: Report

A UK-based whistleblower has revealed children seeking asylum being subjected to racial abuse and assault at a Home Office-run hotel, calling on the British government to act immediately, reports the Guardian newspaper.According to reports, the whistleblower, who worked at the hotel in Brighton for over a year, scores of children who arrived in the UK without parents or a carer suffered “emotional abuse” and were later driven onto the streets and joined criminal gangs.

The revelation comes a week after an investigation by the Observer newspaper revealed that dozens of youngsters were kidnapped by gangs from the same hotel, prompting calls for a public inquiry.The reportsaid that more than 200 children are missing from the hotels managed by the Home Office.

A week after the report, another whistleblower came forward and claimed that some more children in the Brighton hotel are being threatened.

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“I heard staff threatening to throw children out of the window and joking about them going missing,” the whistleblower told theObserver.

He further said that despite flagging the inappropriate staff behaviour, no action was taken by the Brighton hotel, one of seven run by the Home Office.

“There was a lot of xenophobic stuff, like: ‘Fuck off back to your country.’ Somebody heard one senior staff member calling a child a ‘fucking terrorist’.”

He added that staff would regularly talk about children being abducted from nearby streets and that the targeting of youngsters was common knowledge.

The Sussex police have been apprised of the matter and have started investigating a potential trafficking case after three children got into a car outside the Brighton hotel.

According to reports, the car was driven towards London before police intercepted it. However, Home Office sources maintained they have no evidence of children being kidnapped, reports Guardian.

Responding to these reports, a Home Office spokesperson denied that the children are being kidnapped.

“We have not received any complaints in relation to these claims. The wellbeing of children in our care is an absolute priority. Robust safeguards are in place to ensure they are safe and supported as we seek urgent placements with a local authority. When issues do arise, we take complaints extremely seriously and they are acted upon quickly.”

“In October, the independent immigration watchdog found young people in hotel accommodation unanimously reported feeling safe, happy and treated with respect,” the spokesperson was quoted as saying by the Guardian.

(With inputs from agencies)

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