An 80-year-old pensioner with severe mobility problems has spoken out about his eviction from a rental property, claiming civilian tenants have been poorly treated since 2020.
Colin Hall told a staggered Nigel Farage on GB News he felt "very disgusted" with the treatment of civilian tenants, suggesting properties may have been allocated to Afghan refugees instead.
"We didn't know whether Afghan refugees were being put in our properties and we still don't," Hall said.
He noted that whilst he and his 75-year-old wife took over their rental in 2019, they were told to leave despite the local garrison having shut in 2015. Hall also mentioned that the district council had purchased eight properties and housed Afghan refugees in them.
GB NEWS
|Colin Hall said the ordeal was 'horrendous'
Hall described the eviction process as causing "unbelievable stress" over many months of anxiety and worry. "We went months and months and months very anxious and worried," he explained.
When the couple approached East Hampshire District Council for housing assistance, they were told they were only entitled to a one-bedroom flat. "We thought that was ridiculous in our position. I'm 80 and my wife is 75. I have severe mobility problems. How on earth could we have a flat?" Hall said.
LATEST DEVELOPMENTS
- Row erupts as GB News star accused of ‘most xenophobic speech in history of British broadcasting’
- Eamonn Holmes in tense clash with GB News guest defending migrants on benefits: ‘You’re the expert!’
- Zia Yusuf reacts as Suella Braverman denies responsibility for Afghan scandal cover-up - WATCH
The couple fought the eviction and "ruffled a few feathers" by writing to numerous people before being taken to court. In September, they were given six weeks to vacate under the Common Law Tenancy Agreement Repossessions Act, though they managed to find alternative accommodation.
Hall noted that other families faced even harsher treatment, with one couple and their children given just four weeks' notice.
GB NEWS
|Hall joined Nigel Farage on GB News
The context of Afghan resettlement in the UK has recently come to light following revelations about a secret government programme.
The BBC reported that thousands of Afghans were covertly relocated to Britain after a Ministry of Defence data leak in February 2022 exposed the personal details of approximately 19,000 Afghan asylum seekers.
The breach, which occurred following the Taliban's 2021 takeover, wasn't discovered by the British government until August 2023 when sensitive information appeared on Facebook.
A special resettlement programme was subsequently established, with around 4,500 Afghans relocated under the initiative.
The operation was initially subject to a media gag order, which a High Court judge lifted on Tuesday, allowing public disclosure of the programme for the first time.
Hall criticised the Ministry of Defence over the treatment he and other civilian tenants received. "The stress we went through was horrendous. One parent families were unceremoniously told to quit," he stated.
Nigel Farage described Hall as a "really good example of the real world effects of what is going on in this country".
Hall revealed that he and his wife had initially taken over their rental property in 2019, after the Army had vacated it in 2015. He questioned the logic of their eviction, saying: "We were told they were given the boot simply because they were not needed for service personnel. That's ridiculous when in 2019, the local garrison was shut in 2015."
More From GB News