Residents of the Oxfordshire village of Piddington held a symbolic vote on Wednesday on whether it should leave the United Kingdom over a proposed nearby asylum centre.
The ballot is intended as a protest against government plans to house up to 1,250 asylum seekers at a nearby former military site.
Home to about 350 people and with no shops, pubs or cafes, Piddington residents said they were ‘shocked’ by the proposal, which they say would transform the small rural community.
British Prime Minister Andy Burnham said that moving asylum seekers out of hotels and into cheaper accommodation on government-owned sites would involve ‘difficult decisions’ and that ‘we have to ensure that we have a fair plan’.
The Home Office said it is working with local authorities to reduce the impact of asylum accommodation on communities.
The vote comes amid a wider national debate over asylum accommodation and migration policy.
