Crowborough resident REFUSES to pay council tax after claiming home 'no longer has value' following asylum seeker influx

A resident who lives nearby Crowborough Army Camp has refused to pay council tax as he claims his house "no longer has any value".

Giles Ellis attended Hastings Magistrates Court today, responding to a summons, after he purposefully withheld council tax payments.

Mr Ellis has refused to pay his council tax to Wealden District Council since January, when the first asylum seekers moved into the Crowborough Camp.

The basis for his refusal is that he believes his house no longer has any value, and that he is not able to sell.

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Crowborough has hosted a temporary asylum accommodation site since early last year, established as part of wider Government efforts to house people while their claims are processed.

The site is understood to currently accommodate around 350 migrants.

Wealden District Council claims it has court paper evidence revealing two Government departments had agreed the camp could remain open until 2030.

After hearing evidence from Wealden District Council that the required procedures had been properly followed, magistrates granted the liability order against Mr Ellis.

In court, Mr Ellis spoke out, saying "I'm a law-abiding citizen, I have paid my dues all my life."

Mr Ellis told GB News of another Crowborough resident who was due to exchange contracts on his house last October, but the prospective buyers pulled out just after the announcement that the Crowborough site would be used to house up to 600 illegal immigrants.

He added: "A local estate agent has told me that so many people pulled out, they lost £65,000 worth of commissions in one week."

Mr Ellis said that for people who live close to the camp "our lives have been turned upside down".

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Other residents in Crowborough have also withheld council tax. Karen Jones, said she’s withholding tax "because of the army camp and how the public has not been consulted".

Explaining her reasoning, she said: "I think we all feel we haven’t got a voice. No matter what we say, or how we say it, or even if we write, we are never given answers."

Crowborough residents attended the summons at Hastings Magistrates today, in support of Mr Ellis. Ms Jones said: "We’re going to be here for Giles to support him in his efforts and what he’s trying to achieve."

A spokesman from Wealden District Council said: "We understand that some residents feel strongly about the situation relating to the Crowborough migrant accommodation.

"However, council tax is a statutory charge set out in the Local Government Finance Act 1992 and the Council Tax (Administration and Enforcement) Regulations 1992, and liability to pay is determined by law rather than personal views or local circumstances."

They said when council tax remains unpaid, the Magistrates’ Court may grant a liability order where legal requirements are met, as wider objections are not valid defences in law.

In a wider statement about the use of the Crowborough site as asylum accommodation, the Home Office said: "This Government is removing the incentives drawing illegal migrants to Britain.

"The population in asylum hotels has fallen by nearly 20 per cent in the last year and by 45 per cent since the peak under the previous Government - helping reduce asylum support costs by nearly £1billion."

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