Prime Minister Andy Burnham has urged wealthy neighbourhoods to accommodate asylum seekers, but critics are asking why the UK is welcoming them in the first place. The debate comes as the small village of Piddington in Oxfordshire is already protesting the plan to house some asylum seekers on a nearby former military base.
Home to about 400 residents, Piddington officials have declared a referendum on whether the town should separate itself from the UK in response to proposals to bring some 1,000 refugees nearby. Calum Miller, Liberal Democrat MP for Bicester and Woodstock, also voiced concern over the plan, despite his party's traditionally more open stance on immigration and asylum.
Following the Piddington backlash, Burnham is now looking at wealthy neighbourhoods to do its part for the government. 'We cannot have a situation where it's only the poorest communities in the country that receive all of the dispersal of refugees and asylum seekers,' he said in an interview. 'I do believe all parts of the country need to work, to play their part.'
Burnham is also open to listening to Piddington residents regarding their complaints about having refugees nearby. Miller said it is about 'social cohesion,' adding he has 'no idea how the government thinks (1,250 asylum seekers) can be absorbed into the community.'
'We shouldn't be housing illegal immigrants anywhere—wealthy or not,' said shadow home secretary Chris Philp. 'Illegal immigrants should all be deported within a week of arrival, to their country of origin or a safe third country like Rwanda.'
According to property data and analytics platform Area360, Richmond Park, Sheen Gate & Petersham in Richmond upon Thames District, is the richest district with a gross annual household income of £128,590 ($173,650). This is followed by Herne Hill & Dulwich Park, Southwark, with £125,416 ($173,415). Rounding up the top five are South Kensington (Kensington and Chelsea District), Kew Gardens (Richmond upon Thames) and Alexandra Park (Haringey District).
In determining the wealthiest villages, Area360 said: 'Figures represent combined household income before tax and are shown at neighbourhood (small-area) level, so they can reveal wealthy pockets within otherwise mixed districts… Based on gross household income data, the wealthiest areas in the UK are overwhelmingly concentrated in London.'
Burnham, though, did not identify any specific wealthy community where asylum seekers can be housed. He instead pledged to end reliance on HMOs (houses in multiple occupation), which has been widely used to accommodate asylum seekers. According to government statistics, some 97,519 people received asylum support from the UK by the end of March.
Breaking Barriers, a refugee employment charity, says the public has a negative opinion of asylum seekers because of misinformation. 'It's easy to feel confused when there is so much disinformation in the media,' the organisation said.
Over 117 million people were displaced from their home countries due to violence and persecution in 2025. Returning them to their home countries is often dangerous. Yet while many Britons complain about the rising asylum numbers, the UK is not among the top five refugee-hosting countries. Those are Colombia, Germany, Turkey, Iran and Uganda.
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