Symbolic Referendum in Piddington Village: 92% 'Yes' Vote Against Migrant Settlement Plan

In a small village with a population of only 358, an unusual referendum was held. The result of the ballot box took the debate about 1,250 immigrants planned to be settled in the old military facility near the village to a whole new level.

According to CNN International, residents of Piddington, Oxfordshire, England, went to the polls on Tuesday because of a plan that directly concerns them. But this was no ordinary local vote.

285 PEOPLE SAID 'YES'

Village residents voted for a symbolic plan to secede from the UK in principle and retain self-determination. The result was remarkable: Approximately 92 percent of voters expressed this opinion. City council vice president Susannah Parden announced that 312 votes had been counted, corresponding to approximately 92 percent of the ballots distributed. According to the information provided by Parden, 285 votes were cast in favor and 26 votes were cast against. 1 vote was deemed invalid.

IT ALL STARTED WITH THE 1,250 MIGRANT PLAN

Behind the extraordinary vote in Piddington is the government's plan for a former military base near the village. The government plans to resettle around 1,250 adult male migrants at the former military facility known as Bicester Garrison. With this plan coming to the agenda in the small village, discussions about immigration policy and the future of the local people grew.

358 PEOPLE LIVE, THERE'S NOT EVEN A GROCERY

Only 358 people live in Piddington, according to 2021 data from the Diocese of Oxford. There is a church and a village hall in the village. But Piddington doesn't even have a local grocery store or post office.

The plan to settle up to 1,250 adult male migrants in a former military facility near such a small settlement brought reaction from village residents.

THE RESULT FROM THE BALLOT BOX HAS NO LEGAL POWER

The referendum held in Piddington is not legally binding. In other words, the vote result is not a decision that will directly change the government's immigrant resettlement plan.

However, the result was one of the striking reflections of the growing debate on immigration in England at the local level.

Particularly the debates about immigrant boats crossing the English Channel from France to England and where the immigrants to the country will be settled have brought the immigration issue to the center of the agenda again in the country. The symbolic vote in Piddington also revealed how this tension was reciprocated in a small village.