Migrants staying in the asylum hotel at the centre of a political storm have praised Sir Keir Starmer after a controversial ruling allowed them to remain there.
A temporary injunction which blocked asylum seekers being housed at the Bell Hotel in Epping, Essex, was dramatically overturned at the Court of Appeal on Friday after a Home Office appeal.
The decision sparked widespread anger from locals and politicians throughout Britain, but residents at the hotel have welcomed the move and even thanked those responsible.
If the injunction had not been blocked, some 138 migrants living in the hotel would have been kicked out by September 12.
Khadar Mohamed, 24, from Somalia, said he was 'delighted' with the news as they had been 'living in fear' from residents who had been protesting outside for the last month.
'I want to say thank you Keir Starmer and his government. I am delighted with the news, wow. That is really amazing.'
Khadar, who said he had won his claim for political asylum against the Home Office, added: 'We are good people. We are not criminals.'
'The noise and protests are bad. We can't leave the hotel and have been told don't speak to protestors.'
Another migrant living in the hotel said they were 'very happy with the decision'.
But locals in the market town say the judge's ruling has 'shocked' them and will only bring more stress to an area which has been at the forefront of drama.
Sam Collingwood, 43, has lived in Epping for 20 years and said the decision was 'terrible for all of us'.
He added: 'We don't need this. We're so stressed. It's been a real worry. I don't know where we go from here. How many more will stay there?
'What happens now? It's terrible. Children go back to school next week, what then?'
Britain has been gripped by protests this summer after an asylum seeker in the Bell Hotel was charged with sexually assaulting a teenage girl last month - claims which have been denied by the accused, Hadush Gerberslasie Kebatu.
And despite the Home Office victory to keep the Bell Hotel in operation, Epping's residents and politicians have vowed to continue pressuring the government to tackle the immigration crisis.
The decision sparked widespread anger from locals and politicians throughout Britain.
Tory leader Kemi Badenoch said the move showed Prime Minister Keir Starmer 'puts the rights of illegal immigrants above the rights of British people who just want to feel safe in their towns and communities.'
Meanwhile, Nigel Farage added: 'Illegal migrants have more rights than the people of Essex. Reform UK will put an end to this.'
Mr Farage's party, Reform UK, has said that all 12 councils it controls should be exploring legal options to stop asylum seekers being housed in local hotels.
As of Saturday, at least 19 councils have vowed to take legal action to kick asylum seekers out of hotels following the ruling.
Further anger was sparked when a grinning migrant was caught on camera showing his middle finger to protestors outside an asylum hotel just hours after the Court of Appeal's decision.
The young man was seen at the window of the Roundhouse hotel in Bournemouth, Dorset as around 200 demonstrators called for it to be shut down.
Sir Keir Starmer has responded to the unrest by promising small boat migrants will be 'detained and sent back'.
In a social media post, the Prime Minister said: 'I am clear: we will not reward illegal entry. If you cross the Channel unlawfully, you will be detained and sent back.'
The government has previously argued that the need to protect the human rights of asylum seekers by housing them in hotels outweighed the safety concerns of locals.
Former Lord Chancellor Charlie Falconer said the government was right to take the Epping case to the Court of Appeal but said people wanted action to close asylum hotels.
He rejected suggestions that the UK may have to pull out of the European Convention on Human Rights to be able to efficiently remove people with no right to be in the country.
Lord Falconer, who served under former prime minister Sir Tony Blair, told BBC Radio 4: 'We've obviously got to move forward in relation to closing the hotels and also stopping the crossings.
'The Government always has the burden of doing what's possible and the Government is doing the right thing in relation to it, but there's a lot more to do, and if we don't, as a government, do it, then you'll see those opinion polls raised yet further for Reform because they don't have the burden of having to be practical.
'But the country wants some action in relation to it.'