Gypsies set up illegal camp in Bettws, Newport

From the South Wales Argus

GYPSIES have set up an illegal camp at a council-owned car park in Newport.

The group, who moved 12 caravans near Morgan’s Pond, Bettws Lane, last Thursday have upset members of Newport Angling Association who park there when fishing on the canal.

Chairman of the Association Dennis Ballat said he received 23 calls on Friday from members concerned they had nowhere to park.

Mr Ballat said the group’s presence could cause problems on Sundays when the club hosts regular competitions attracting up to 40 cars.

Bettws councillor Noel Trigg said he had talked to the Travellers, who told him they intended to stay for a week before heading home to Ireland for Christmas. He said: “They are very nice people and they are paying their way – they said when I was there that anything to be paid they would pay.

“They don’t mean to cause any upset to anybody. I know the fishermen might be upset, but they can still park and get in there.”

Newport council said encampments such as this demonstrate why Newport needs official Gypsy and Traveller sites.

They said a well-managed transit site, where temporary residents would pay for services and can stay for a specified period, would help the council tackle the continuing problem of illegal camps.

The council is also seeking to establish a residential site for families who are longer term residents of Newport or who have strong links with Newport.

They, too, will pay for services and council tax like other city residents.

A preferred site for a permanent camp at the former road safety centre on Hartridge Farm Road has been identified along with a preferred transit site in a yard off the A449.

Smaller residential sites on the former Ringland allotments and Brickyard Lane in Allt-yryn could be built if the need arose in future, while land on Celtic Way, Marshfield, was chosen as an alternative transit site if the preferred option could not be developed.

A final decision will be made in the new year by full council.

ARGUS COMMENT: Angling for a solution

THERE are few subjects that enrage readers of this newspaper more than illegal Gipsy and traveller camps.

The long-running saga of where in Newport new legal sites for the fraternity will be placed is controversial enough. But when Gypsies and Travellers set up illegal camps the frustrations of many council taxpayers tend to boil over.

There are 12 caravans on Bettws Lane in Newport, meaning members of the Newport Angling Association have nowhere to park for their regular Sunday competitions.

Interestingly, one local councillor says Travellers at the illegal site say they will be gone within a week and are willing to ‘pay their way’.

Meanwhile, Newport council says the illegal camp highlights the reasons for official sites in the city.

We do not argue with either point. What will puzzle many readers, however, is why an illegal camp is allowed to remain in place for any length of time.

The Bettws Lane camp has been in place since before the weekend. Surely if those who have set up camp on the site are breaking the law then they should be moved on?

The camp may be temporary and the people living there may have every intention of leaving the site as they found it. We hope so.

The alternative will do nothing other than fuel the anger of many Newport council taxpayers.