Fabwitch

WHAT IS HAPPENING TO PIDDINGTON IS FUNDAMENTALLY WRONG. Yesterday, Keri from @Women4Restore and I visited Piddington and spent time with residents directly affected by what is being proposed. Piddington has around 370 residents, including just 46 children. It is a tiny, very rural village with virtually no infrastructure — no school, no shop, just a small village hall, a post box and the church. It is effectively in the middle of nowhere, miles from the nearest town and the services people would normally rely on. We were told some families have lived here for five generations, with generations of their families resting in the village churchyard. Yet beside this tiny community, the @UKLabour Government is proposing accommodation for up to 1,256 single adult male migrants aged 18–65 — many of whom the Home Office itself acknowledges will have entered Britain by an illegal route before claiming asylum. That is more than THREE TIMES the population of the village. And this is NOT an existing barracks or residential accommodation site. Site A is a former MOD defence storage and distribution site. I could see substantial quantities of military equipment/material still stacked there, which residents told us included equipment returned from overseas military operations. There is NO accommodation sitting there ready for 1,256 people. The Government proposes demolishing existing structures, building new modular accommodation and installing substantial new infrastructure — all at significant public expense. There are also serious concerns over sanitation, drainage and flooding. Government assessments say existing water capacity is limited, existing electricity infrastructure cannot be relied upon, and a new wastewater treatment works is proposed. The farming couple we met, whose land backs directly onto the MOD site, showed us photographs of their farm badly flooded, with fields under water and animals having to be moved into barns. The residents we spoke to were scared — genuinely terrified about what this could mean for their families, their homes and the future of their village. We were also told three house sales have fallen through and another resident had a remortgage application refused. And this could be here for around TEN YEARS. This community has fought proposals involving this site before: an asylum accommodation centre in 2002/03 and an Immigration Removal Centre in 2008/09. Now, in 2026, they are fighting again — for the third time under a Labour Government. Just before we arrived around midday on 2 September, residents had received confirmation that an Urgent Crown Development application had been validated that day, accompanied by well over 1,000 pages of supporting documents. Those documents had only been published that morning. The application will NOT be determined by Cherwell District Council. Cherwell is only a consultee. The ultimate decision sits with central government. Residents told us they have written to every single Labour MP asking for help and answers, yet not one Labour MP has contacted them or visited Piddington to hear their concerns first-hand. Where is the fairness? Where is the local voice? Where is the democracy? But one thing is crucial: THIS APPLICATION HAS NOT YET BEEN APPROVED. Piddington’s fight is NOT OVER. At the entrance to the village is a sign: I AM SPARTACUS YOU ARE SPARTACUS WE ARE SPARTACUS So, Piddington: I AM SPARTACUS TOO. You are not fighting this alone. Hundreds of thousands of people are 100% behind you. Thank you @PiddingtonRoars for making Keri and I so welcome and for sharing your concerns and your stories with us. @PiddingtonNews @RestoreBritain @Women4Restore @RupertLowe10 @_HenryBolton @elonmusk @POTUS @andyburnham @ShabanaMahmood #Piddington #RestoreBritain #Oxfordshire