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11:09am Friday 9th May 2008
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HUNDREDS of travellers today won a High Court battle against immediate eviction.
A judge ruled that the families should be allowed to stay on at Dale Farm, Crays Hill, and Hovefields, Wickford, for the time being while concerns about their needs and welfare are further investigated.
Mr Justice Collins, sitting at the High Court in London, said decisions to evict taken by Basildon District Council in December last year cannot stand.
Aware that his decision might cause controversy, the judge said he was conscious that the council might feel the delay in carrying out the evictions was to be deprecated.
"Nonetheless, the decision, whichever way it goes, must be based on consideration of all that is relevant," the judge ruled.
Moves to remove the travellers, involving the issuing of enforcement notices, have been going on for several years.
Last December, the council decided to use section 178 of the Town and Country Planning Act 1990, to enter the land and enforce compliance with the orders.
The judge said there could be no doubt that the families could not remain where they were and the time must come when they would have to leave, "whether voluntarily or by means of forcible eviction."
He warned them: "Despite the difficulties they face and the absence at present of sufficient sites to meet their needs, travellers and gypsies must appreciate that the law will not tolerate developments without planning permission being obtained, particularly on Green Belt land, and will be likely to uphold enforcement action where the individual circumstances of those affected have been properly considered against the harm to the environment and to relations with the community."
But it was necessary "for all relevant matters to be properly taken into account" and that had not occurred in the Basildon case.
It was impossible not to have some sympathy with the problems created for gypsies and travellers by the lack of sufficient sites to cater for their proper needs.
The judge said the approach to their "needs" taken by Basildon council had been "too restrictive".
He also did not think the duty owed by the local authority to the travellers under homelessness laws had been sufficiently dealt with.
Further consideration should be given to whether any alternative sites could be found in the district, and whether any families could be allowed to remain "for the time being".
The judge said: "Finally, I think that the approach has been that the sites should be cleared, rather than a consideration of whether there are any individual families whose circumstances are such, whether because of serious ill-health or the needs of their children, that in their individual cases eviction would be disproportionate."
Richard Sheridan, president of the Gypsy Council, welcomed today's ruling, saying: "It is a victory. We have won round one, and we are hoping to get justice at the end of the day.
"As British citizens we are entitled to live like everybody else.
"Keeping us on the road costs £18m a year. The cost of eviction would be £1.9m, with court costs of nearly a million pounds.
"Leaving us where we are will save the Government millions of pounds, and our kids will be able to be educated and our families live in decent sanitary conditions."
Peter, Billericay says...
11:28am Fri 9 May 08
Ricayboy, Billericay says...
11:31am Fri 9 May 08
Paul, says...
11:31am Fri 9 May 08
Nigel, says...
11:32am Fri 9 May 08
Nigel, says...
11:32am Fri 9 May 08
Bitta, Southend-on-Sea says...
11:38am Fri 9 May 08
Steve, says...
11:42am Fri 9 May 08
Luke, Basildon says...
11:53am Fri 9 May 08
anon, says...
12:00pm Fri 9 May 08
ShipShape, Basildonk says...
12:05pm Fri 9 May 08
Sarah, Billericay says...
12:08pm Fri 9 May 08
Sharron, Billericay says...
12:14pm Fri 9 May 08
Luke, Basildon says...
12:15pm Fri 9 May 08
ron, Basildon says...
12:24pm Fri 9 May 08
Sharron wrote:Why do councils have obligations to travellers? The judge talks about councis having a responsibility to their homeless in their domain (fair enough, to some extent), but the Crays Hill travellers are intentionally "homeless", and despite having disposable income do not pay council tax etc.
Isn't it time the Council stopped wasting money on lawyers and started spending it on its obligations to provide proper sites for travellers?
Huh?, Billericay says...
12:28pm Fri 9 May 08
Sharron wrote:Absolutely, and after that we could all chip into building a new housing estate for the Poles.
Isn't it time the Council stopped wasting money on lawyers and started spending it on its obligations to provide proper sites for travellers?
Luke, Basildon says...
12:28pm Fri 9 May 08
ron wrote:It is straightforward. The law is the law. shame the Judge does not know this
Sharron wrote: Isn\'t it time the Council stopped wasting money on lawyers and started spending it on its obligations to provide proper sites for travellers?Why do councils have obligations to travellers? The judge talks about councis having a responsibility to their homeless in their domain (fair enough, to some extent), but the Crays Hill travellers are intentionally \"homeless\", and despite having disposable income do not pay council tax etc. The whole issue, regardless of party politics, seems quite straightforward to me. But hey, what do I know...
lisa, rochford says...
12:34pm Fri 9 May 08
Steve, Leigh says...
12:37pm Fri 9 May 08
Sally, Crays Hill says...
12:42pm Fri 9 May 08
Andrew, Shoeburyness says...
1:10pm Fri 9 May 08
Sherry, At work :( says...
1:16pm Fri 9 May 08
Happy Hammer, Basildon says...
1:28pm Fri 9 May 08
Luke wrote:Not true i'm afraid. Michael Howard MP in the Tory Gvt of 1992, removed the obligation for local councils to provide for travellers. If that had not happened there would be no illegal traveller sites now. The tories started all this.
This is a sad day for democracy. A democratically elected Council is told an unaccountable Judge who is out of touch with reality that the Law doesnt apply to a certain group of individuals. As for Sarah\'s comments, In the Labour Party there is an in built bias towards the travellers. In the Conservatives there is an in built bias towards up holding the Law
Sherry, At work :( says...
1:30pm Fri 9 May 08
David, Billericay says...
2:08pm Fri 9 May 08
Margaret Stoll, Rochford says...
2:43pm Fri 9 May 08
ShipShape wrote:Hello ShipShape
<b> \"the law will not tolerate developments without planning permission being obtained\"
The law seems pretty tolerant up to now.
Anyway, I\'ve got my eye set on a plot of land, I\'ll be moving there soon.
If anyone can prove they\'ve got Viking blood, they can move on it with me, we\'ll have all the back up of the Anti-Discrimination Industry.
Maybe we\'ll get the lovely James Dasinger to come and set the long boat on fire, before we all go back to the £12000 Long house for some quaffing ale, singing songs about Wodin and looking forwards to a bit of a laugh in Valhalla.
Ridiculous? Only as much as this whole debacle is..</b>
Sharon, Work says...
2:45pm Fri 9 May 08
piano hinges, says...
2:48pm Fri 9 May 08
Margaret Stoll wrote:My Yorkshire family goes back to the Vikings, and my Scottish family goes back to Iceland.
ShipShape wrote: <b> \"the law will not tolerate developments without planning permission being obtained\" The law seems pretty tolerant up to now. Anyway, I\'ve got my eye set on a plot of land, I\'ll be moving there soon. If anyone can prove they\'ve got Viking blood, they can move on it with me, we\'ll have all the back up of the Anti-Discrimination Industry. Maybe we\'ll get the lovely James Dasinger to come and set the long boat on fire, before we all go back to the £12000 Long house for some quaffing ale, singing songs about Wodin and looking forwards to a bit of a laugh in Valhalla. Ridiculous? Only as much as this whole debacle is..</b>Hello ShipShape Whilst it's pretty difficult to prove Viking blood, it's known that anyone from Yorkshire is likely to have some, because of the long time that Vikings were settled there. So yes, I think I would be eligible to join you! Tacitus wrote in 'Germania' that any of the Germanic peoples (Angles, Saxons, Jutes, what became English and Scandinavians) don't like living close to each other. They like a bit of space in between their settlements. Living cheek-by-jowl, one caravan parked next to another, would not suit us. Me, I'd love a piece of woodland, with a log-cabin among the trees. I'd be able to lie in bed and listen to the dawn chorus.
Hovefields resident, wickford says...
2:59pm Fri 9 May 08
mike b, Billericay says...
3:05pm Fri 9 May 08
evilc, essex says...
3:10pm Fri 9 May 08
Nigel wrote:Nigel
This shows how politicised the judiciary has become. The left wing is so totally established within the fabric of society that it will take the incoming Conservative government a long time to root it out. Only then can we begin to move forward.
peter, billericay says...
3:12pm Fri 9 May 08
evilc, essex says...
3:14pm Fri 9 May 08
Bitta wrote:You are correct BUT without hope of getting rid of the lonney left wing elite this country will collapse.
Nigel, if you think it'll will be any different if/when the conservatives are in power then you are sadly mistaken. Nothing will change, we are the dumping ground and laughing stock of Europe.
wayne, florida usa says...
3:22pm Fri 9 May 08
ron, basildon says...
3:24pm Fri 9 May 08
rochford resident, says...
3:26pm Fri 9 May 08
Margaret Stoll wrote:But wouldn't the building of a log cabin in woodland be a desecration of greenbelt land?
ShipShape wrote: <b> \"the law will not tolerate developments without planning permission being obtained\" The law seems pretty tolerant up to now. Anyway, I\'ve got my eye set on a plot of land, I\'ll be moving there soon. If anyone can prove they\'ve got Viking blood, they can move on it with me, we\'ll have all the back up of the Anti-Discrimination Industry. Maybe we\'ll get the lovely James Dasinger to come and set the long boat on fire, before we all go back to the £12000 Long house for some quaffing ale, singing songs about Wodin and looking forwards to a bit of a laugh in Valhalla. Ridiculous? Only as much as this whole debacle is..</b>Hello ShipShape Whilst it's pretty difficult to prove Viking blood, it's known that anyone from Yorkshire is likely to have some, because of the long time that Vikings were settled there. So yes, I think I would be eligible to join you! Tacitus wrote in 'Germania' that any of the Germanic peoples (Angles, Saxons, Jutes, what became English and Scandinavians) don't like living close to each other. They like a bit of space in between their settlements. Living cheek-by-jowl, one caravan parked next to another, would not suit us. Me, I'd love a piece of woodland, with a log-cabin among the trees. I'd be able to lie in bed and listen to the dawn chorus.
Margaret Stoll, Rochford says...
3:49pm Fri 9 May 08
undertaker, crays hill says...
3:58pm Fri 9 May 08
Sherry wrote:Love it when your furious, i have a field to berth your caravan in and i can watch you doing your washing.:)
Actually i'm now furious, i'm doing it all wrong, i'm working every hour i can, commuting up to London because a job here wouldn't pay my mortgage. I declare everything i earn, no cash in hand jobs, i pay for everything, full whack. I get no help from anyone, all the courses i went on I HAD TO PAY FOR, no little community centre for me to learn in. I might as well sell up, get a caravan and stick it in some field off the 127, let's see how long i will last before i get chucked off.
Margaret Stoll, Rochford says...
4:04pm Fri 9 May 08
mo, basildon says...
4:13pm Fri 9 May 08
Partyboy, Saarfend says...
4:29pm Fri 9 May 08
Sharon wrote:Yeah!!! Everytime me n my homies rock up to a disused barn for a rave the ol' bill waste no time in kicking us off! Maybe if we took some caravans and Dags they would steer clear...?
I agree with Sherry!!! How long do you think we would last in a field!!!! Maybe all of us that pay our council tax should all stick together & boycott it until they realise just how much we pay & what we don\'t get in return! Why do the travellers not have to pay council tax. Most of them are living in brick built homes after all!!! And with no planning or building permission!! This law drives me mad!
wellblowme, Anywhere but here says...
4:38pm Fri 9 May 08
seeview, Southend on Sea says...
4:41pm Fri 9 May 08
rochford resident, says...
4:44pm Fri 9 May 08
Partyboy wrote:you never said a truer word. This is why I joined the English Democrats. It represents people like you and me, the true English. Join up - you could make a difference!
Sharon wrote: I agree with Sherry!!! How long do you think we would last in a field!!!! Maybe all of us that pay our council tax should all stick together & boycott it until they realise just how much we pay & what we don\\\'t get in return! Why do the travellers not have to pay council tax. Most of them are living in brick built homes after all!!! And with no planning or building permission!! This law drives me mad!Yeah!!! Everytime me n my homies rock up to a disused barn for a rave the ol\' bill waste no time in kicking us off! Maybe if we took some caravans and Dags they would steer clear...?
Partyboy, Saarfend says...
4:45pm Fri 9 May 08
Partyboy, Saarfend says...
4:53pm Fri 9 May 08
rochford resident wrote:Ok.... thanks for that! :-/
Partyboy wrote:you never said a truer word. This is why I joined the English Democrats. It represents people like you and me, the true English. Join up - you could make a difference!Sharon wrote: I agree with Sherry!!! How long do you think we would last in a field!!!! Maybe all of us that pay our council tax should all stick together & boycott it until they realise just how much we pay & what we don\\\'t get in return! Why do the travellers not have to pay council tax. Most of them are living in brick built homes after all!!! And with no planning or building permission!! This law drives me mad!Yeah!!! Everytime me n my homies rock up to a disused barn for a rave the ol\' bill waste no time in kicking us off! Maybe if we took some caravans and Dags they would steer clear...?
martin, basildon says...
4:54pm Fri 9 May 08
wellblowme, Anywhere but here says...
4:54pm Fri 9 May 08
Partyboy wrote:Do you have any firearms? or Dags?
Maybe the \'people\' should take matters into their own hands? Tell them there is free Guiness over at Bas Vegas and while they are away move them ourselves??? :) Im sure hundreds would turn up to help!
xxx, says...
4:57pm Fri 9 May 08
Partyboy, Saarfend says...
5:01pm Fri 9 May 08
wellblowme wrote:Just take a couple of cans of fabreeze down there... That'll scare the sh*t outta them!
Partyboy wrote: Maybe the \'people\' should take matters into their own hands? Tell them there is free Guiness over at Bas Vegas and while they are away move them ourselves??? :) Im sure hundreds would turn up to help!Do you have any firearms? or Dags?
Local Boy, Hawkwell says...
5:01pm Fri 9 May 08
Margaret Stoll wrote:S**t! What do I do, my ancestry is Viking, Angle and Norman, does the Norman bit exclude me from joining you?
<b>ShipShape wrote:Hello ShipShape
<b> \"the law will not tolerate developments without planning permission being obtained\"
The law seems pretty tolerant up to now.
Anyway, I\'ve got my eye set on a plot of land, I\'ll be moving there soon.
If anyone can prove they\'ve got Viking blood, they can move on it with me, we\'ll have all the back up of the Anti-Discrimination Industry.
Maybe we\'ll get the lovely James Dasinger to come and set the long boat on fire, before we all go back to the £12000 Long house for some quaffing ale, singing songs about Wodin and looking forwards to a bit of a laugh in Valhalla.
Ridiculous? Only as much as this whole debacle is..</b>
Whilst it's pretty difficult to prove Viking blood, it's known that anyone from Yorkshire is likely to have some, because of the long time that Vikings were settled there.
So yes, I think I would be eligible to join you!
Tacitus wrote in 'Germania' that any of the Germanic peoples (Angles, Saxons, Jutes, what became English and Scandinavians) don't like living close to each other. They like a bit of space in between their settlements. Living cheek-by-jowl, one caravan parked next to another, would not suit us.
Me, I'd love a piece of woodland, with a log-cabin among the trees. I'd be able to lie in bed and listen to the dawn chorus.</b>
wellblowme, Anywhere but here says...
5:02pm Fri 9 May 08
mike b, Billericay says...
5:02pm Fri 9 May 08
ron wrote:I agree.
Tempting as it might be, you can't blame Labour for absolutely everything here. This was a judgement delivered by a judge, not a politician. As for Basildon Council, that is not Labour either. Please let's not descend into party politics here; the traveller situation goes deeper than that. I think the more rabid right-wingers who pop up on the Echo would be (no doubt grudgingly) surprised to know how many "lefties" are in agreement with the basic sentiment on issues like this.
ShipShape, Basildonk says...
5:03pm Fri 9 May 08
wellblowme, Anywhere but here says...
5:05pm Fri 9 May 08
Partyboy wrote:I Like it :)
wellblowme wrote:Just take a couple of cans of fabreeze down there... That'll scare the sh*t outta them!Partyboy wrote: Maybe the \'people\' should take matters into their own hands? Tell them there is free Guiness over at Bas Vegas and while they are away move them ourselves??? :) Im sure hundreds would turn up to help!Do you have any firearms? or Dags?
Sarah, Billericay says...
11:23am Fri 9 May 08