MP: Gypsies causing mayhem in our towns - Ayrshire

From the irvine Herald

The brakes were put on a caravan enthusiasts’ weekend at Eglinton Park after Travellers set up camp.

Now MP Brian Donohoe is calling for tighter rules on Travellers as he fears they are putting people off booking the park for events.

Travellers arrived at the park just days before the annual Scottish Caravan Club’s Autumn Rally and were allowed in to pitch up.

But they refused to leave in time for the event to take place and caravan club enthusiasts were turned away.

The MP said: “It is obvious that the policies in place to deal with these situations are not working. We need our councils to have more teeth backed up by the police in order that these lawless people can be moved on in a more expeditious manner.”

“It is unfair that they are able to cause such mayhem and disturb events which are a long time in the planning – they do not care an iota about the effect their behaviour has on the local law abiding citizens within the areas they rock up to, so why do we tip-toe around them and allow them to continue to have a detrimental effect on our areas?”

Kilwinning resident, Dorothy Lytham, told the Herald she spoke with caravan club members who were forced to turn away from Eglinton Park.

She said: “The Travellers had apparently paid for a single night’s stay last Thursday on the understanding that they were to leave on the Friday morning.

“However, through the night, the community had sneaked in seven extra caravans through the night and they refused to move the following day.

“The Scottish Caravan Club had pre-booked the park ahead of their Autumn rally, but members were turned away because the Travellers were camped on site.”

Brian Donohoe said that “something must be done”, adding: “I am told there are in excess of 15 events planned at Eglinton Park in the coming year, events which bring money into the local economy.

“It is a huge concern of mine that the travelling community could be the cause of further cancellations which, quite frankly, would be a great loss to the area and could stop various clubs and organisations wishing to book the area for future events.”

A spokesman for North Ayrshire Council said: “We can confirm that there was an unauthorised camp set up in Eglinton Park last week, but the group has subsequently moved on following discussions with Police Scotland.

“Unauthorised camps have a real impact on the organisation of events at Eglinton Country Park, preventing other visitors using the park, directly affecting the park’s income. Given this, we are considering improved security measures including locking gates and heavy duty barriers where appropriate.

“We do not have the power to evict Travellers who have set up camp on council land without a court order. Indeed, Scottish Government guidelines state that circumstances which would merit eviction are ‘rare’ and would be a ‘last resort’.

“The council is required to follow these guidelines, which clearly state that local authorities should engage with Travellers, assess their welfare and remind them of their responsibilities under the Travellers code of conduct.”

He added: “We must also take into account the potential disruption of the local community and obstruction of rights of way. The guidelines state ‘....where the circumstances are appropriate, local authorities and the police may have to consider using powers available to them to effect a forced removal, as a last resort.’”

A Scottish parliamentary report earlier this year said that many Gypsy Travellers live in “horrendous conditions and continue to suffer discrimination”.

Equal opportunities committee convener, Mary Fee, said the time had come for the government and local authorities to take action.

She said: “A national strategy to support local authorities on housing strategies for Gypsy-Travellers and a national awareness campaign to ensure there is a zero-tolerance on discrimination against Gypsy-Travellers must be initiated and led by the Scottish Government.”