A GB News reporter was struck on the head with a placard by a Stand Up To Racism protestor in Altrincham, during one of several demonstrations erupting across the country over the use of hotels to house asylum seekers.
Sophie Reaper, North West Correspondent for GB News, was reporting live from the scene when she was surrounded by a crowd of Stand Up to Racism activists. The group, who turned out in force to counter anti-migrant sentiment, became increasingly agitated as Reaper attempted to conduct interviews.
“I’ve just been hit by a placard on the head by one of these counter-protesters,” Reaper told viewers in the moments following the incident. “We are just trying to give them the opportunity to have their side. Police are now having to jump in. We have just been assaulted by one of these counter-protesters. We’re just going to step out because things have got rather dicey.”
Footage from the protest shows officers from Greater Manchester Police stepping in as tensions mounted. Reaper later confirmed she had spoken with police about the incident.
The demonstration in Altrincham is one of several taking place nationwide tonight. Protests and counter-demonstrations have been reported outside the Highfield Hotel in Southampton, as well as in Leeds, Bowthorpe in Norfolk, Epping in Essex, and Canary Wharf in London. The unrest comes amid mounting community concern over government plans to accommodate asylum seekers in hotels.
Earlier today, it emerged that the Home Office intends to move forward with housing single male migrants at a hotel in Diss, Norfolk, despite objections from local residents and council officials.
The growing unrest underscores the controversy surrounding the government’s use of hotels for asylum seekers, a policy that has ignited fierce debate and a wave of demonstrations from both sides of the migration debate.
