An elderly couple had just moved into their home when they received a letter they took as a threat to give up their property for migrants, the British residents told the Daily Mail.
A letter from the North Northamptonshire Council was left on Jose and Ted Saunders' door mat in January, referring to their Rushden home as "derelict" and "empty" and indicating that if they didn't take action, they'd be forced to, according to the Daily Mail, which obtained the letter. The council later apologized and said the letter was a mistake.
"The Government has identified empty privately-owned properties as a potential cause of blight within communities, and as a wasted resource at times of high housing need," read the letter dropped on their doormat. "As part of this process North Northamptonshire Council is identifying empty properties and sites within the area, with the aim of encouraging owners to bring premises back into use or to find alternative options for derelict sites."
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The note shocked Jose.
"I couldn't believe it," Jose, 76, said. "We moved to Rushden to help provide childcare for my granddaughter and found this nice little place to live."
"The idea of forcing us to sell it to make room for refugees and asylum seekers seems totally wrong," Jose said.
But Jason Smithers, leader of the North Northamptonshire Council, told the Daily Mail the council is attempting to better use unoccupied properties.
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"North Northamptonshire Council (NNC) is working with owners of long-term empty properties to bring their property back into use," Smithers said in a statement.
The council said it had witnessed an immigration increase in recent years, particularly single men, and was struggling to provide suitable housing accommodations, according to the letter. It said the long-term goal was to house the migrants in empty properties, benefiting both homeowners and projects supporting asylum seekers, including Homes for Ukraine, Afghan Resettlement and Asylum Dispersal.
Ted, 78, called the council, which responded three days later and apologized, according to the Daily Mail. The council said the house was mistakenly designated the house as available for possible compulsory purchase, a policy that allows a local authority or government to obtain land or property for public use without consent from the owner.
The elderly couple criticized the policy even after the apology.
"What on earth is the council doing forcing people to sell their houses — and even an empty house is owned by someone — so that asylum seekers can live in them?" Jose told the Daily Mail.
"The answer to this is to stop them coming in the first place, not to force people out of their homes," Jose said.
The council did not respond to a request for comment.
