Piddington votes for independence from Britain: Residents approve symbolic measure to leave the UK amid battle to stop new asylum camp that's four times the size of their village

Residents of a tiny Oxfordshire village have voted overwhelmingly to declare independence from Britain in a symbolic referendum staged in protest at plans to house more than 1000 asylum seekers at a former military base nearby.

Piddington's parish council announced the result at 7am today after villagers went to the polls yesterday to decide whether their community should 'secede' from the UK.

Some 312 votes were counted last night, making up 92 per cent of the ballot papers issued - with 285 voting 'yes', 26 voting 'no' and one spoiled paper.

The vote has no legal force and will not take Piddington out of the UK, but campaigners hope the gesture will send a message to Westminster over the proposed asylum accommodation at the former Ministry of Defence site at Bicester.

The result comes as the Government's planning application for the site remains under consideration.

The Home Office is seeking permission for the temporary use of the former Bicester Garrison, including new modular accommodation, health and welfare facilities, roads, security infrastructure and recreational areas, to accommodate up to 1,256 people.

The proposed site is now the subject of a formal consultation, with representations due by September 17.

That means the proposed number of asylum seekers would be more than three times the size of Piddington's population, which is around 350 people.

The scale of the plans prompted the campaign in the village, with residents arguing that the infrastructure and road network are not equipped to deal with the proposed development.

The Oxfordshire village of Piddington announces it has voted in favour of independence today

Residents attend a parish council meeting in the village hall in Piddington yesterday

Piddington's women campaigned against plans to house 1,250 asylum seekers in their village

Pensioner Herbert Owen, known locally as Herbie, described the referendum as the 'Battle of Britain' after casting his vote. 

The 76-year-old said: 'It means everything our grandparents, our parents fought for – today is the Battle of Britain. This isn't just about Piddington, this is about our whole country. This Government is destabilising our country.

'Wherever they put these people, in camps, in HMOs (houses in multiple occupation), or whatever, they're ruining people's lives.'

Mr Owen said Piddington was a 'wonderful little village' and that it had changed little since he moved there 33 years ago.

Parish council chairman Tim McNally said villagers had been driven to holding the referendum because they felt the Government had failed to engage with their concerns.

'They actually have played every possible trick in the book to avoid engagement,' he said. 'If we've got to do something, it has to be proportionate, and that is not proportionate - that is us having to assimilate into them, not them assimilating into us.'

The referendum follows an earlier vote in July in which 96 per cent of those who took part backed holding an independence referendum.

The date of that vote, July 4, was deliberately chosen because it is associated with the American Declaration of Independence.

Residents have since stepped up their campaign against the asylum plans.

Last week, 133 women from Piddington wrote to female MPs warning that their lives could be transformed if the plans went ahead.

The letter said: 'life as we know it will be destroyed' if the plans succeed.

'We will not feel safe walking our streets. We are already living in fear,' they wrote.

More than 20 women have also reportedly signed up for self-defence classes after residents said they had been advised by police to take precautions.

A protest sign pictured outside the Bicester Ministry of Defence site in Oxfordshire

A blank ballot paper in Piddington

Residents gather waiting for the results to arrive

Restore Britain leader Rupert Lowe outside the village hall in Piddington

A protest sign is seen (bottom right) outside Bicester military camp this week

Louise Brooker, 51, said the village would effectively be 'on lockdown' if the asylum accommodation went ahead.

'I won't feel safe walking along the road,' she told The Sun. 'And that's in the daylight. In the winter here, when it's dark at 4pm, the very few streetlights that we have don't stay on all night.

'So the village is completely pitch black so in effect we are going to be in lockdown because everyone is going to be scared to leave their homes.'

Melise Witkin, 59, said: 'This is not about being rich or poor, this is about safety. People have worked really hard throughout their lives to live in this village.

'It is not such a rich or poor village. I just don't think that is a conversation to be had. This is about safety.

'We are 356 people in the village with 46 children and 1,250 men turning up is a recipe for disaster. People walk their dogs, children play, I just think it is madness.

'This is about safety, nothing more. Even for them [the asylum seekers], along that road there is no pavement, there are no street lights. We just have to be realistic.'

The road access has been a particular concern.

Parish councillor Mike Nixon said the proposed site has no pedestrian access areas and that the Government had suggested asylum seekers could be given high-visibility jackets while walking along a busy road.

He said: 'The nearest path is about a mile and a quarter away, down a very busy road that's unlit.'

The Government's own travel plan describes pedestrian access as 'limited' and says travelling on foot is 'not recommended'. It adds that cycling and public transport options may be provided.

The Government has stressed that the former military site would be designed to be largely self-contained to minimise its impact on the surrounding community.

A Home Office spokesman said the Government is working to 'fairly house asylum seekers' across the country as it closes asylum hotels.

'As part of the process, we engage with local authorities and police forces to ensure the safety and security of those in the surrounding area,' the spokesman added.

A spokesman for the Prime Minister said the Government was 'working to fairly house asylum seekers across the country'.

Reform's Suella Braverman backed the residents. She is pictured speaking to one of them

A sign for the village of Piddington is pictured next to another saying '350 residents, 1250 proposed, nearly 4x our village population' - in reference to local objections to a government plan to house some 1,200 asylum seekers at a nearby Ministry of Defence (MoD) site

Shadow home secretary Chris Philp (right) and shadow minister for women and equalities Joy Morrissey (left) speak with residents in the village

An ariel view of the village of Piddington in Oxfordshire

They said the government was 'engaging with local authorities to reduce the impact on communities and we've saved taxpayers more than £1bn on asylum support costs since the election'.

'The Home Office has submitted an application to obtain planning permission to use the Bicester site for asylum accommodation, but it remains the case that no final decision has been taken on the site's future use,' the spokesman added.

The Home Office first announced the Bicester proposal in June as part of its efforts to reduce reliance on asylum hotels and move people into alternative accommodation.

The current planning application is for up to 1,256 people and says the proposed use would be temporary.

The Home Office has stressed that submitting the application does not mean a final decision has been taken, with the proposal still subject to planning, due diligence and other approvals.

The referendum has nevertheless attracted national political attention.

Reform UK leader Nigel Farage has said he would support other communities seeking to hold similar symbolic votes, while Reform MP Rupert Lowe told reporters outside Piddington village hall that the referendum should be 'lauded'.

He said: 'I think if we're going to stop this, the people have to rise up and say they've had enough, and they're not going to put up with this.'

Former Conservative Home Secretary Suella Braverman also visited the village before the vote.

She said: 'This will dramatically transform the character of the village. These are the wrong plans for this village, and you know only harm and damage will come from it.

'I applaud the efforts of these women to make their voices heard. They've spoken very powerfully, and they are the reason I'm here. I stand with them.'

Shadow Home Secretary Chris Philp also visited residents and said: 'The mothers and grandmothers of Piddington are clearly terrified for the safety of their daughters and granddaughters, because we know young male illegal immigrants are disproportionately likely to commit sex offences and rape.

'Being here underlines how important it is to kick out this Labour Government and leave the ECHR, which would enable us to deport illegal immigrants upon arrival, instead of imposing them on places like Piddington.'

The Government has not yet made a final decision on the future of the Bicester site.

And despite Piddington's symbolic declaration of independence, the village remains legally part of the United Kingdom.

For residents, however, the vote was intended to demonstrate the strength of feeling over a development which they say would fundamentally alter their community.