Residents of Piddington, an Oxfordshire village near Bicester, have voted symbolically to declare independence from the UK in protest against government plans to house up to 1,256 male asylum seekers at a former military site nearby.
The referendum, organised by the parish council, was held after the Home Office announced plans to use MoD Bicester as part of efforts to move asylum seekers out of hotels.
Of the 312 votes cast, 285 supported leaving the UK, 26 voted against the proposal, and one ballot paper was spoiled.
The vote has no legal effect, but organisers said it was intended to highlight residents’ opposition to the proposed asylum accommodation centre.
Piddington Parish Council vice chair Susannah Parden announced the result, saying, “We are Piddington the village that roars”.
Parish council chair Tim McNally described the vote as an expression of local democracy.
The government, however, has said it will not reconsider the proposed use of the site.
Culture Secretary Lisa Nandy said changing the plan would be unfair to communities already accommodating large numbers of asylum seekers.
“The alternative would be to ask communities who have already seen their local community quadruple in size to take more of the load, and I think that’s deeply unfair,” she said.
Nandy added that the government understood residents’ concerns but needed to continue meeting its obligations to people seeking safety in the UK.
“I do really understand that when changes are made that affect your community, it can be very distressing. We inherited an enormous asylum backlog, we are processing claims much more quickly, we are removing people who don’t have the right to be here,” she said.
Shadow Home Secretary Chris Philp described the referendum as a “wake-up call” for the government, while Oxfordshire County Council leader Tim Bearder said campaigners had effectively drawn attention to their concerns.
Meanwhile, residents have also raised concerns about safety and pressure on local services. More than 130 women in the village have written to female MPs expressing fears about the potential impact on their security and daily lives.
Asylum Welcome, an Oxfordshire charity, also questioned the suitability of the location.
“They [asylum seekers] will be distant from the kind of support that they usually need, and that will put additional burden on the public services that are there to accommodate them,” Asylum Welcome representative, Hari Reed, said.
Piddington resident Christina Gower said the referendum reflected residents’ frustration.
“You see this kind of stuff on the telly, in front of 10 Downing Street, not in plucky Piddington, in the middle of Oxfordshire”.
“It doesn’t make sense, but then I just think it’s such a symbol for the rest of the UK, and I think the residents here in Piddington are so proud that they can pull off something so wacky and out of place and really impactful,” She said.
The Home Office announced the MoD Bicester plans in June. The site, known as “Site A”, is located between Piddington and Upper and Lower Arncott.
A public consultation on the proposal is running until midnight on September 17.
