UK: Village votes to 'secede' in asylum center plan protest

An English village of about 350 people has voted to "secede" from the United Kingdom , in a symbolic protest against government plans to set up an asylum reception center nearby.

Residents of Piddington, about 25 kilometers (15 miles) northeast of Oxford, celebrated with a placard reading "Principality of Piddington" near the village road sign on Wednesday.

They oppose plans, still under review, to house asylum seekers in a disused military base, MoD Bicester (Site A).

The village's parish council said that 312 people cast ballots in the vote, a turnout of almost 92%.

Participants in the vote, which had no legal basis, were asked to agree or disagree with the statement: "I support Piddington seeking to secede from the United Kingdom and pursuing self-determination."

Of them, 285 voted to secede, 26 voted against, and one spoiled their ballot.

Parish council chair Tim McNally said that, going forward, the village would identify as the "Principality of Piddington."

"For us, it's about proportiality," McNally told Sky News. "How does a small village of 350 odd people assimilate with 1,250 males?"