A large number of protesters and counter-demonstrators gathered outside an east London hotel after rumours spread on social media that asylum seekers are being housed there. Metropolitan Police officers were seen guarding the Britannia International Hotel on Marsh Wall, Canary Wharf. The force was contacted for comment.

Tensions rise as Essex Police backtrack on their initial denial, revealing their role in escorting activists to a hotel at the heart of violent protests.

Epping has found itself at the centre of a controversy over asylum seekers being housed in hotels in the past week. The Essex town, with a population of about 12,000 and which sits at the end of the Central line on the London Underground network, has seen more 1,000 people take part in two protests.