Thursday briefing: Where will Labour house asylum seekers now councils can use planning law to close hotels?

The article discusses the shift from council-run accommodation to hotel contracts for housing asylum seekers in the UK. It highlights the growing anger and protests across the country, with far-right groups taking advantage of the situation. The article also mentions that the move away from hotels may be hastened by planning law, as councils can use it to close down hotels used for this purpose. The article also covers other news topics, including Israel's expansion of military operations in Gaza City, Labour's plans to use public-private partnerships to build neighborhood health centers in England, Russia's demand to be part of any international talks on Ukraine's security, the UK's equalities regulator's claim that Scotland Yard's plan to expand the use of live facial recognition technology is unlawful, and the research finding that England will sell off more than eight times as many council homes in 2025-26 as were constructed the previous year.