{
  "$type": "site.standard.document",
  "bskyPostRef": {
    "cid": "bafyreiggqx3guluvfzzr7v5lhh2m6csj3ycutuqc4vbtk7e543k2qrsube",
    "uri": "at://did:plc:oznbnvgr7dmvddiyvr7dih52/app.bsky.feed.post/3mg54gsygjj22"
  },
  "coverImage": {
    "$type": "blob",
    "ref": {
      "$link": "bafkreieyewaqnaruatkwatyyzryuarlk4dvschvqdhazzd4sc3navhpzvq"
    },
    "mimeType": "image/jpeg",
    "size": 77765
  },
  "path": "/news/wales-asylum-hotel-seekers-shut-down",
  "publishedAt": "2026-03-03T05:12:54.000Z",
  "site": "https://www.gbnews.com",
  "tags": [
    "forced the Home Office not to follow through with plans to place asylum seekers inside",
    "Number of migrants in asylum seeker hotels falls to lowest level in 18 months as Labour Minister tells GB News: 'We are restoring order and control at our border'",
    "Shabana Mahmood tells GB News she WOULD live next door to a migrant camp",
    "Europe braces for ANOTHER migrant crisis with millions prepared to flee Middle East amid US-Iran war",
    "The GB News Editorial Charter"
  ],
  "textContent": "\n\n\nA Welsh hotel which was forced to house asylum seekers has been \"shut down with immediate effect\".\n\nThe Stradey Park Hotel in Furnace, Llanelli, was the centre of protests in 2023 - which forced the Home Office not to follow through with plans to place asylum seekers inside.\n\n###\n\n\n\n\nThe hotel was set to house 240 asylum seekers, but was subject to widespread protests, with hundreds arriving outside the hotel to demand the proposal be scrapped.\n\nIt was one of the first hotels in the country to be earmarked for \"asylum seekers\" under Tory plans, laying the groundwork for their mass usage under Labour.\n\nProtests against the decision spanned from May until the decision on October 10 2023, and the hotel was able to reopen shortly afterwards.\n\n###\n\n\n\n\nTRENDING\n\nStories\n\nVideos\n\nYour Say\n\nBut many locals vowed to stay away from the hotel as a result of the controversy.\n\nThe hotel is now said to have shut down with immediate effect - and it is not possible to make reservations.\n\nAll dates on the calendar for the reservation system are mysteriously greyed out until next February, with a message reading \"no arrival\" flashing up if someone tries to select a date.\n\nIn 2023, attempts to prevent the housing of asylum seekers at Stradey Park failed and led to widespread condemnation from local councilors and politicians.\n\n###\n\n\n\n\n###\n\n\n\n\nCarmarthenshire Council leader Darren Price said after the Home Office decision: \"I very much welcome the decision of the Home Office to withdraw its plans for the Stradey Park Hotel; it’s the right decision for the hotel and more importantly, it’s the right decision for the people of Furnace.\"\n\nDame Nia Griffith, the MP for Llanelli, welcomed the decision at the time.\n\nShe said: \"This debacle has seen the hollowing out of a key landmark hotel in the area with the loss of almost 100 jobs.\n\n\"It has created divisions within local communities and taken up valuable resources from our public services at a time when they were already stretched.\n\n### LATEST ON THE MIGRANT CRISIS:\n\n\n\n\n  * Number of migrants in asylum seeker hotels falls to lowest level in 18 months as Labour Minister tells GB News: 'We are restoring order and control at our border'\n  * Shabana Mahmood tells GB News she WOULD live next door to a migrant camp\n  * Europe braces for ANOTHER migrant crisis with millions prepared to flee Middle East amid US-Iran war\n\n\n\n###\n\n\n\n\n###\n\n\n\n\n\"We now need to move forward and bring our town together once more.\"\n\nProtests outside the four-star hotel were largely peaceful - though a constant police presence eventually cost Dyfed-Powys Police more than £1million.\n\nA fire was also set outside the hotel in October 2023, while fireworks were launched towards officers.\n\nHotel bosses laid off over 100 staff as part of the plans to re-purpose the building.\n\nIn late 2024, it was confirmed that Stradey Park had changed owners following the migrant controversy, with Ullcom Limited, based in Hounslow, acquiring a majority shareholding.\n\nThe CEO of Ullcom is Ahsan Ullah, the former deputy leader of George Galloway's Workers Party of Britain.\n\nBut now, the hotel appears to be shuttered.\n\n###\n\n\n\n\n###\n\n\n\n\nOne member of staff told WalesOnline the hotel had \"ceased trading as of now\".\n\nUllcom's 2026 confirmation statement is listed as overdue by Companies House, with a deadline of February 6.\n\nAnd in another twist, on February 5, the hotel was announced as Llanelli-based Scarlets rugby team's \"official accommodation partner\".\n\nThe hotel, which had been previously owned by Sterling Woodrow Investments and Gryphon Leisure Limited, has not officially confirmed the closure.\n\nStradey Park Hotel and Scarlets Rugby Club have been reached for comment.\n\n###\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n**Our Standards:The GB News Editorial Charter **",
  "title": "Four-star hotel that was forced to house asylum seekers is 'shut with immediate effect'"
}