Piddington women lobby MPs as Commons rejects Tory motion on Bicester asylum site
Women from Piddington, Oxfordshire, attended Parliament on 14 October as MPs debated a Conservative motion opposing a Home Office plan to house 1,256 male asylum seekers at MoD Bicester. MPs rejected the motion 309 to 113, and the Home Office says no final decision has been made.
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The story, neutrally told
Right · 2A group of women from Piddington, an Oxfordshire village, travelled to Westminster on Wednesday 14 October to oppose a Home Office plan to house 1,256 male asylum seekers at the former Ministry of Defence site at Bicester. Daily MailR “The Government wants to accommodate 1,256 male asylum seekers at a former Ministry of Defence (MoD) site in Bicester.” Read at Daily Mail ↗ GB NewsR “A group of Piddington women fighting against plans to house migrants in an old RAF base have descended on Westminster ahead of Parliament's debate.” Read at GB News ↗ Right · 2Residents had held a symbolic referendum the previous month to leave the UK in protest at the plan. GB News says the plan was revealed in June and that the women have since written to every female MP but received only a handful of replies. GB NewsR “Since the plan was revealed in June, women in the village have since written to every female MP in Parliament but have only received a handful of replies.” Read at GB News ↗ Daily MailR “This has included voting in a symbolic referendum last month to leave the UK in protest against the Home Office plans.” Read at Daily Mail ↗ Right · 2The outlets differ on the village's size: GB News gives a female population of around 133, while the Daily Mail describes a village of around 400 residents. GB NewsR “The women of the village, which has a female population around 133” Read at GB News ↗ Daily MailR “a tiny village of around 400 residents near to the site” Read at Daily Mail ↗
Right · 1The Conservatives used an Opposition Day motion that condemned the plans and urged ministers to leave European human rights laws so illegal migrants could be deported. Joy Morrissey, the shadow women and equalities minister, opened the debate and pointed out the Piddington women in the gallery. Daily MailR “An Opposition Day motion tabled by the Conservatives condemned the plans and urged ministers to quit European human rights laws in order to deport illegal migrants.”“Tory shadow women and equalities minister Joy Morrissey noted the presence of the Piddington women in the Commons gallery.” Read at Daily Mail ↗ Right · 2Morrissey said Labour MPs had refused to meet the women, that Bridget Phillipson, the Minister for Women and Equalities, had 'nowhere to hide', and that the men concerned were a danger to women and girls. She told GB News it was 'not safe for women and girls' and that the vote would force Labour and the Liberal Democrats to 'make a firm choice'. GB News reports her claim that Phillipson refused to meet the group. Daily MailR “'Now the Minister for Women and Equalities (Bridget Phillipson) and her colleagues on the front and back benches opposite have nowhere to hide.'” Read at Daily Mail ↗ GB NewsR “We're forcing a vote so that Labour and the Lib Dems have to make a firm choice on this.”“Ms Morrissey even claimed Bridget Phillipson has refused to meet the group of worried women.” Read at GB News ↗ Right · 2Resident Louise Brooker told GB News the group 'completely disagree' with the plans, fear for their safety and their families' safety, and that the Government 'won't reach out and speak to us'. GB NewsR “Louise Brooker told The People's Channel that they want to show MPs they "completely disagree" with their asylum plans.” Read at GB News ↗ Daily MailR “'We fear for our safety, we fear for the safety of our families. And today we're here as the women of Piddington,'” Read at Daily Mail ↗
Right · 1Calum Miller, the Liberal Democrat MP for Bicester and Woodstock, which includes both Piddington and the site, called the plan wrong for local communities, asylum seekers and taxpayers. He said he understood residents' fear. He rejected framing the issue as one of race ('It's not a race issue, it's a man issue') and accused the Conservatives and Reform UK of seeking to divide. Daily MailR “Mr Miller branded the proposal as 'wrong for local communities and my constituency is wrong for asylum seekers and is wrong for the taxpayer'.”“'It's not a race issue, it's a man issue.'” Read at Daily Mail ↗ Right · 1Home Office minister Anna Turley told MPs the way asylum seekers have been housed has not been fair and that the Home Office has submitted a planning application for the site but 'no final decision has been made'. She praised the Piddington campaign as 'incredibly imaginative and very forceful'. Daily MailR “'While the Home Office has submitted a planning application to use MoD Bicester site for asylum accommodation, no final decision has been made.'”“She praised Piddington campaigners for an 'incredibly imaginative and very forceful' campaign.” Read at Daily Mail ↗ Right · 1A Home Office spokesman said the Government is seeking a fairer distribution of asylum accommodation, claimed over £1billion in savings since the election, and said it is closing asylum hotels and moving to alternatives such as former military sites designed to be self-contained, with 24-hour security and CCTV. GB NewsR “This includes closing all asylum hotels and moving to alternative accommodation, including former military sites that are designed to be self-contained, with 24-hour security and CCTV to minimise the impact on the local community.” Read at GB News ↗
Right · 1At the end of the debate MPs voted 309 to 113, a majority of 196, against the Conservative motion calling for withdrawal from the European Convention on Human Rights and condemning the MoD Bicester plans. Daily MailR “MPs voted by 309 to 113, majority 196, against the Tory motion calling for Britain to withdraw from the ECHR and condemning the MoD Bicester plans.” Read at Daily Mail ↗
Every sentence links to the reporting it rests on. The pill in front of each says where its sources sit: Left, Centre or Right when one side supplies at least half of them, Mixed when they are evenly split. The number is how many outlets it cites.
Left0 outlets
No left outlet in our sources has covered this story yet.
Centre0 outlets
No centre outlet in our sources has covered this story yet.
Right2 outlets
- Framing
- Both outlets present the women's trip as a campaign against Labour's migrant-housing plan and as a Government failure on border control, led by Conservative shadow minister Joy Morrissey. GB News leads with the women taking the fight to Andy Burnham's 'doorstep'; the Daily Mail covers the Commons debate and vote.
- Emphasis
- Women's and girls' safety fears, Morrissey's accusations against Labour, and the Piddington residents' own words. The Daily Mail adds the Lib Dem MP's and the Home Office minister's remarks and the vote result.
- Leaves out or plays down
- GB News gives no debate outcome and no Lib Dem or minister's remarks in the debate. Neither outlet quotes a Labour MP replying to Morrissey's claim that they refused to meet the women. Neither cites evidence for the claims about the men's identity documents or crimes.
- Charged language
- “migrant camps”“out-of-control immigration”“illegal migrant men”“descended on Westminster”“fierce campaign”
- For example
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“Piddington women descend on Westminster as they take fight to Andy Burnham's doorstep” — GB News
“the Government need to get a grip of the out-of-control immigration that we are seeing as a country.” — GB News
“Piddington women attend Parliament as Tories continue protest against Labour plans to house 1,200 male migrants near tiny Oxfordshire village” — Daily Mail
What every side reports
- The Home Office plan is to house 1,256 male asylum seekers at the former MoD site at Bicester.
- Piddington residents held a symbolic referendum last month to leave the UK in protest.
- Women from Piddington went to Parliament, and Louise Brooker said they 'completely disagree' with the plans.
- The Home Office says no final decision has been taken on the site.
Where accounts differ
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Size of Piddington
- Right
- GB News gives a female population of around 133; the Daily Mail describes a village of around 400 residents.
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Timing of the Commons debate
- Right
- GB News, published in the early afternoon, says the debate is 'tomorrow'; the Daily Mail reports it took place on Wednesday 14 October.
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Whether Labour ministers refused to meet the women
- Right
- Morrissey claims Labour would not meet the Piddington women; the coverage carries no response to this from Phillipson or Labour.
Piddington place
Residents, speaking through Louise Brooker, say they fear for their safety and their families' safety and want MPs to see they 'completely disagree' with the plan. They say they speak for women across the UK and that the Government has not reached out to them.
“"And they won't reach out and speak to us.” — GB News
“'We fear for our safety, we fear for the safety of our families. And today we're here as the women of Piddington,'” — Daily Mail
Left0 articles
No coverage yet.
Centre0 articles
No coverage yet.
Right2 articles
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GB NewsR ·
Piddington women descend on Westminster as they take fight to Andy Burnham's doorstep
Sympathetic Presents the Piddington women as a village fighting a failing Government, with Morrissey's and residents' quotes and a Home Office statement at the end.
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Mixed Reports the Commons debate and vote, with Conservative, Lib Dem and Home Office voices, while describing the campaign as 'fierce' and the plan as 'Labour's bid'.
- 14 Oct 13:58 First GB NewsR Piddington women descend on Westminster as they take fight to Andy Burnham's doorstep
- 14 Oct 16:34 +2h 36m Daily MailR Piddington women attend Parliament as Tories continue protest against Labour plans to house 1,200 male migrants near tiny Oxfordshire village
Times are when each article was published, or when we first saw it if the outlet gave no time.
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