𝓤𝓷𝓲𝓽𝓮𝓭 𝓝𝓮𝔀𝓼

Once the archetypal English cathedral town, Chelmsford was known for its historic centre, bustling high street and leafy parks. But today, women and elderly residents say they feel intimidated by groups of asylum seekers and report wider anti-social behaviour, including by locals, such as loitering and drinking in the street, shouting and fighting. Migrants are bussed into the city from nearby accommodation at a nearby airbase, MDP Wethersfield. The Express met with Reform UK’s leader of Essex County Council, Peter Harris, who said the Government needs to “step up” to protect Brits from being harassed by migrants.

He walked around the high street with a pair of security staff, clad in red vests and sporting body-worn cameras, after the launch of a £150,000 scheme — “Operation Vanguard”. Guards also patrol Braintree and Colchester, where migrants are bussed in daily from accommodation at a nearby airbase, MDP Wethersfield.

Cllr Harris said that there have been 15 recorded incidents of crime, including the rape of a nurse at Broomfield Hospital. Shoplifting and harassment has also taken place, he added.

“They’re making women and children very, very uncomfortable,” Cllr Harris said. “Countless messages have been sent to me to say thank you.”

Exasperated Linda Sheppard, 72, who worked for the NHS in diagnostic imaging, seemed visibly shaken when recalling recently getting “bad vibes” from one man who was watching her in the street.

She said: “I can’t take my usual route. You go with your animal instinct that says: ‘Danger. Beware.’”

The former NHS worker added that men hang around in groups and said of the new measures: “I think it’s a very good thing.”

“I complained to the police maybe on three separate occasions,” she added. “I felt intimated. These guys walk about in threes, so there’s three and then another three.

“It worked up to 12 one day. I’m ecstatic that they’ve done something about it. We wouldn’t need it if they didn’t allow them to stay here.”

The local, who lives in sheltered housing, said her elderly neighbours do not come into town in the afternoon.

Cllr Harris said: “It’s okay for people to say: ‘Well, we’re not scared.’ Well, good for them. But what about the people that are scared?

“And I think that’s the thing: how many assaults, how many sexual assaults do we have to wait for before the Home Office step up and do something about it? I wasn’t prepared to wait. Let’s take the action first.”

He told the Prime Minister, Andy Burnham: “Stop the boats and detain and deport.”

Cllr Harris added: “And the first thing you can do to protect the women and children of Essex is actually keep the gates of Wethersfield closed. There’s lots for them to do. It’s almost like a holiday camp; I’ve seen it. There’s no reason for these guys to come out.”

Valerie McDevitt, 71, who used to work in the town’s leisure centre, said: “If they have people on the streets, it’s handy, but I don’t feel threatened by [the asylum seekers] at all. We’ve had a lot in the cathedral grounds and I walk through them all the time.”

Tony Woolnough, 60, used to work in security before being assaulted on the job. He said: “I’d rather the money be spent on actual police officers. Security have very, very limited powers.”

He is not worried about the migrants, adding the only crime he notices is drug-related. As Cllr Harris walked in the town centre, a woman could be heard saying: “Biggest waste of money you’ve ever spent.”

A man shouted: “P*** off. You’re not welcome here. B***** off.”

Conservative MP for Braintree, Sir James Cleverly, said: “I have regular meetings with Essex police and have joined them in patrol around Braintree.

“The best way to alleviate the concerns of local people is the prompt and permanent closure of Wethersfield asylum centre.

“I opposed the centre when Robert Jenrick and Suella Braverman proposed it but was overruled.

“When I was Home Secretary, Essex had more police officers than at any point in its history. Fully warranted officers with real arrest powers, not private security guards, are the right way to tackle crime and anti-social behaviour.”

Chelmsford’s Liberal Democrat MP, Marie Goldman, said: “This is a costly gimmick. Private security guards are not subject to the same accountability, held to the same standards, nor given the same powers as sworn officers – and their use risks drifting towards a dangerous two-tier policing system.

“Instead of stoking division in our communities and funnelling taxpayer cash into private security contracts, Reform UK should be properly resourcing Essex Police, restoring visible community policing, and ensuring our local forces are able to keep every neighbourhood safe.”