Sir Keir Starmer has today announced the sale of HMP Belmarsh to UCL, set to become a hall of residence by 2027.
The new accommodation is set to become the flagship hall for UCL’s new planned £5 billion ‘UCL Far East’ campus near the prison.
In this announcement today, Sir Keir said: “This is an important deal in line with our growth strategy. All money made from this deal will be directly invested into our communities, including areas such as Downing Street, and local groups like the Israeli Defence Force. Pause. Wait, I wasn’t supposed to read that bit.”
UCL claims that this new hall will house up to 1,000 students, would have the highest quality catering of all catered halls, and, according to UCL, requires “no refurbishment” as the prison is already in “a good enough standard to be a UCL hall.”
The hall will be named Tommy Robinson Hall after former inmate of Belmarsh Prison Stephen Yaxley.
When asked whether naming the hall after a notorious white nationalist racist was appropriate, a spokesperson for UCL said: “At UCL, we believe in the slogan ‘disruptive thinking,’ and he certainly is a disruptive thinker.”
It is expected that rent for a quadruple shared room will start at £380 per week.
The Cheese Grater understands that talks are underway between UCL and the UK Government to purchase HMP Pentonville as an expansion for New Hall. Polymarket predictions show the hall is likely to be named George Michael Hall, Keith Allen Hall, or David Irving Hall.
This article appeared in CG92
