A large funeral cortege to mark the passing of a prominent member of the Gypsy and traveller community has brought Pembroke to a halt.
Douglas Boswell, of Monkton, died at the age of 82 last month.
The main road through the town was shut to allow the precession of more than 20 vehicles to pass through on their way to Westgate Chapel.
Mr Boswell was described as a widely respected resident of Pembroke where he had lived most of his life.
The procession was led by two flat bed vans carrying floral tributes.
Among those lining the route was Shirley Webb.
Funeral procession The procession was led by two flat bed vans carrying floral tributes.
She said: "I've known Mr Boswell for 50 years and met him most days in town.
"He was true Romany Gypsy and was very well respected and he respected everybody around him.
"I will really miss him and that's why I'm standing here today."
Members of the traveller community came from around the UK to pay their respects.
Mr Boswell leaves 10 children and 37 grandchildren.
Bev Stephens, head of Pembrokeshire's Gypsy traveller education department, said Mr Boswell was well thought of throughout the county.
"He was a very loveable, likeable character who was a family man," she said.
"When he was younger he lived in a bow-top wagon and he would come into school and talk to the children about what life was like then.
"Everybody thinks it was romantic but life was very tough then.
"He lost his wife very young but they are a united family and they get a lot of support from each other."
She said the turnout showed how well respected Mr Boswell was.
"I'm sure his family will take a lot of comfort from that," added Mrs Stephens.
Thursday, 2 February 2012
Residents protesting against a Gypsy site at Meriden have been evicted from their temporary shelter by Solihull Council
CAMPAIGNERS who set up camp to protest against a nearby illegal Gypsy site in Meriden have been evicted by councillors.
At a dramatic Solihull Council planning meeting last night, members of the RAID (Residents Against Inappropriate Development) group were told their vigil in Eaves Green Lane must stop by the end of March.
But campaign spokesman David McGrath said after the meeting, which was adjourned for ten minutes so 11th hour talks could take place between councillors, council officers, protesters and Gypsy representatives, that the campaign would go on.
The talks, aimed at forming a group to negotiate effective monitoring of the Gypsy encampment, floundered as councillors voted unanimously to back enforcement action against the RAID campaigners, who have set up an awning, shelter and wood burner at a builder’s yard to help their 24-hour vigil, which has lasted more than 640 days.
Chief planning officer Gary Palmer’s pledge that a report be presented to the next planning committee meeting detailing monitoring arrangements to ensure compliance with the law, was also backed.
Gypsies moved onto green belt land in Eaves Green Lane in April 2010 and lost an appeal in October to stay at the site, but their caravans have remained.
Campaigners claimed at the meeting they had prevented eight lorry-loads of hardcore being delivered illegally to the Gypsy camp, and planning committee member Coun Jim Ryan admitted the protesters had served an invaluable role as “the council’s eyes and ears” monitoring breaches of the law.
But councillors said evicting the protesters was the only way of ensuring they were being fair to all parties.
Mr McGrath said after the meeting: “It’s hugely ironic that the planning system can gear up to evict residents who are there to protect the green belt yet seem paralysed to take action against travellers, who heap spurious appeal on top of spurious appeal to string out their stay and somehow hope that the resolve of the council and residents will be diminished.”
He said the protesters would take down the temporary structures they had put up, but added: “There’s no law in the country that can stop us returning to the site and sitting in the mud and snow if we so choose. This is currently what the residents are minded to do.
“We will only move when we see clear enforcement action taken against those who have devastated otherwise unspoilt countryside.”
Representatives of the Gypsy community who attended the meeting declined to speak to the Mail. They face another court hearing in March over their eviction.
see also
Villagers monitoring gypsy camp to be evicted - because they don't have planning permission
Home-made biscuits, tea and unwavering defiance outside illegal Gypsy camp that looks set to mirror Dale Farm
DON'T STOP OUR BIG FAT GYPSY PROTEST
Meriden Gypsy protesters 'will not cease' campaign
Travellers site bid 'to continue' .> Meriden Gypsy protesters 'will not appeal' against eviction
'We will sit in the mud and rain' - despite Solihull's ruling, Meriden Gypsy camp protesters vow to carry on their vigil
At a dramatic Solihull Council planning meeting last night, members of the RAID (Residents Against Inappropriate Development) group were told their vigil in Eaves Green Lane must stop by the end of March.
But campaign spokesman David McGrath said after the meeting, which was adjourned for ten minutes so 11th hour talks could take place between councillors, council officers, protesters and Gypsy representatives, that the campaign would go on.
The talks, aimed at forming a group to negotiate effective monitoring of the Gypsy encampment, floundered as councillors voted unanimously to back enforcement action against the RAID campaigners, who have set up an awning, shelter and wood burner at a builder’s yard to help their 24-hour vigil, which has lasted more than 640 days.
Chief planning officer Gary Palmer’s pledge that a report be presented to the next planning committee meeting detailing monitoring arrangements to ensure compliance with the law, was also backed.
Gypsies moved onto green belt land in Eaves Green Lane in April 2010 and lost an appeal in October to stay at the site, but their caravans have remained.
Campaigners claimed at the meeting they had prevented eight lorry-loads of hardcore being delivered illegally to the Gypsy camp, and planning committee member Coun Jim Ryan admitted the protesters had served an invaluable role as “the council’s eyes and ears” monitoring breaches of the law.
But councillors said evicting the protesters was the only way of ensuring they were being fair to all parties.
Mr McGrath said after the meeting: “It’s hugely ironic that the planning system can gear up to evict residents who are there to protect the green belt yet seem paralysed to take action against travellers, who heap spurious appeal on top of spurious appeal to string out their stay and somehow hope that the resolve of the council and residents will be diminished.”
He said the protesters would take down the temporary structures they had put up, but added: “There’s no law in the country that can stop us returning to the site and sitting in the mud and snow if we so choose. This is currently what the residents are minded to do.
“We will only move when we see clear enforcement action taken against those who have devastated otherwise unspoilt countryside.”
Representatives of the Gypsy community who attended the meeting declined to speak to the Mail. They face another court hearing in March over their eviction.
see also
Villagers monitoring gypsy camp to be evicted - because they don't have planning permission
Home-made biscuits, tea and unwavering defiance outside illegal Gypsy camp that looks set to mirror Dale Farm
DON'T STOP OUR BIG FAT GYPSY PROTEST
Meriden Gypsy protesters 'will not cease' campaign
Travellers site bid 'to continue' .> Meriden Gypsy protesters 'will not appeal' against eviction
'We will sit in the mud and rain' - despite Solihull's ruling, Meriden Gypsy camp protesters vow to carry on their vigil
Gypsies ready to fight council for their homes - Surrey
GYPSIES living on land in River Lane, Leatherhead, have appealed against the council's decision to reject their planning applications.
Three applications for "permanent use of the land as a Gypsy and Traveller caravan site" were submitted to Mole Valley District Council, but in December the planning committee voted to reject all three.
Planning officers earlier submitted a report detailing the eight-year history of the site, adding that "on balance" permission should be granted.
Susan King, who lives on the site, said: "The reason we have appealed is that they shouldn't have turned us down in the first place.
"They were recommended by the council planners to give permanent permission.
"The second reason is that we can't just up and go, we've got nowhere to go. It's our home so we've got to fight for it."
Councillors were due to consider their next step last night as the Advertiser went to press, but any action could depend on a future decision by a planning inspector.
Three applications for "permanent use of the land as a Gypsy and Traveller caravan site" were submitted to Mole Valley District Council, but in December the planning committee voted to reject all three.
Planning officers earlier submitted a report detailing the eight-year history of the site, adding that "on balance" permission should be granted.
Susan King, who lives on the site, said: "The reason we have appealed is that they shouldn't have turned us down in the first place.
"They were recommended by the council planners to give permanent permission.
"The second reason is that we can't just up and go, we've got nowhere to go. It's our home so we've got to fight for it."
Councillors were due to consider their next step last night as the Advertiser went to press, but any action could depend on a future decision by a planning inspector.
Wednesday, 1 February 2012
Newent Travellers file for a chance to stay a bit longer - Gloucestireshire
FURIOUS residents have accused Travellers, who should be off an unauthorised site today, of delaying tactics to enable them to stay.
A planning inspector told Travellers at Southend Lane, Newent, they could stay at the site until January 31 and return it to grassland.
But a new planning application for caravan pitches has now been filed.
The Travellers' planning consultant said it was prompted by Forest of Dean District Council failing to find another site.
"It's a delaying tactic," said spokesman for campaign group Newent RAID (Residents Against Inappropriate Development), Mark Greening.
"Residents here are going through a lot of heartache."
He called on the council to do more to make the Travellers comply with planning regulations.
The land is owned by the Travellers, who caused uproar in Newent by making the bulk of their move on to the site during the Whitsun Bank Holiday in May 2009. Lorry loads of stone were ferried through back lanes and residents were furious with district council officials who were powerless to stop it.
The Travellers' planning consultant Matthew Green said the application for 13 family Gypsy pitches with utility and day room buildings, gas tanks and hard-standing would not be necessary if the council found them another site.
"We should have been given permission the first time," he said. "The reason it was made temporary was so the council could come up with other alternatives which they failed to do."
A council spokeswoman said it will review the position today. "The planning inspector has given permission for the travellers to remain on site until January 31," she said.
"We will review the position after this date to consider whether there is a breach of planning control and if so, whether it is expedient to take any action.
"Our decision would need to take into account all relevant material planning considerations."
She confirmed a material consideration would include another planning application.
Forest of Dean MP Mark Harper called on the Travellers to abide by planning regulations.
"The decision by the planning inspector was that the Travellers should leave Southend Lane by 31 January," he said.
"I hope they obey the law and leave as required. My constituents want nothing more than that the law is obeyed."
A planning inspector told Travellers at Southend Lane, Newent, they could stay at the site until January 31 and return it to grassland.
But a new planning application for caravan pitches has now been filed.
The Travellers' planning consultant said it was prompted by Forest of Dean District Council failing to find another site.
"It's a delaying tactic," said spokesman for campaign group Newent RAID (Residents Against Inappropriate Development), Mark Greening.
"Residents here are going through a lot of heartache."
He called on the council to do more to make the Travellers comply with planning regulations.
The land is owned by the Travellers, who caused uproar in Newent by making the bulk of their move on to the site during the Whitsun Bank Holiday in May 2009. Lorry loads of stone were ferried through back lanes and residents were furious with district council officials who were powerless to stop it.
The Travellers' planning consultant Matthew Green said the application for 13 family Gypsy pitches with utility and day room buildings, gas tanks and hard-standing would not be necessary if the council found them another site.
"We should have been given permission the first time," he said. "The reason it was made temporary was so the council could come up with other alternatives which they failed to do."
A council spokeswoman said it will review the position today. "The planning inspector has given permission for the travellers to remain on site until January 31," she said.
"We will review the position after this date to consider whether there is a breach of planning control and if so, whether it is expedient to take any action.
"Our decision would need to take into account all relevant material planning considerations."
She confirmed a material consideration would include another planning application.
Forest of Dean MP Mark Harper called on the Travellers to abide by planning regulations.
"The decision by the planning inspector was that the Travellers should leave Southend Lane by 31 January," he said.
"I hope they obey the law and leave as required. My constituents want nothing more than that the law is obeyed."
Green belt Leeds caravan site plan is rejected
A Traveller’s bid to keep a mobile home on green belt land has been refused.
Following a site visit by members of Leeds City Council’s Plans Panel East, it was decided that the home could not remain on an area of hard standing that he owned behind Gildersome Lane, in Gildersome.
The proposals, recommended for refusal by planning officers, aimed to temporarily retain a two-bedroom mobile home parked up beside the landowner’s stables and utility room.
James Garbutt, of Walker Morris solicitors, said the “unmet need” for alternative Traveller sites in the city and violence at his old home meant that his client had special circumstances to warrant living there.
But council planners stated that the building would have a “harmful impact” on the openness of the land.
Coun Robert Finnigan (Morley Borough Independents, Morley North) sits on the committee and questioned the traveller’s claim of violent threats.
She said: “Your client claims that he had to flee from Cottingley Springs.
“Can you explain why the manager of Cottingley Springs doesn’t recognise this?”
In response, Mr Garbutt maintained that the applicant was a resident at Cottingley Springs for 40 years before he was subjected to threats and violence, for which there was no evidence, causing him to leave.
He said: “If he had somewhere else to go than live on the site he would do, but he is sited there now and is happy to move when there’s somewhere to move to.”
Citing a number of sites in the ward where travellers have stayed or do stay, Coun Finnigan added: “Can you really say that there is an unmet need in this area?”
The panel unanimously voted to refuse the application.
Following a site visit by members of Leeds City Council’s Plans Panel East, it was decided that the home could not remain on an area of hard standing that he owned behind Gildersome Lane, in Gildersome.
The proposals, recommended for refusal by planning officers, aimed to temporarily retain a two-bedroom mobile home parked up beside the landowner’s stables and utility room.
James Garbutt, of Walker Morris solicitors, said the “unmet need” for alternative Traveller sites in the city and violence at his old home meant that his client had special circumstances to warrant living there.
But council planners stated that the building would have a “harmful impact” on the openness of the land.
Coun Robert Finnigan (Morley Borough Independents, Morley North) sits on the committee and questioned the traveller’s claim of violent threats.
She said: “Your client claims that he had to flee from Cottingley Springs.
“Can you explain why the manager of Cottingley Springs doesn’t recognise this?”
In response, Mr Garbutt maintained that the applicant was a resident at Cottingley Springs for 40 years before he was subjected to threats and violence, for which there was no evidence, causing him to leave.
He said: “If he had somewhere else to go than live on the site he would do, but he is sited there now and is happy to move when there’s somewhere to move to.”
Citing a number of sites in the ward where travellers have stayed or do stay, Coun Finnigan added: “Can you really say that there is an unmet need in this area?”
The panel unanimously voted to refuse the application.
Law move to outlaw Leeds Traveller sites
Travellers face jail if they breach a planned permanent legal ban on unauthorised camps across a large area of inner-city Leeds.
Unauthorised camps have cost Leeds City Council nearly £2m in legal and clean-up costs since 2004.
Now councillors are briefing their legal team to bring in an injunction banning Travellers from Armley, Wortley and Holbeck.
The move would mean Travellers being hauled before the court if they set up illegal camps in the area – they could face a fine or prison. At the moment it is a civil offence, and councillors have to apply to the courts to move the Travellers.
Metal gates have already been erected to block off an area next to Wortley Towers, in Tong Road, New Wortley, where Travellers recently set up an unauthorised camp.
Coun Jim McKenna (Lab, Armley) said: “I don’t know why it’s not been done before, the cumulative impact is something that’s got us talking again as it’s had some publicity.
“As we are actively seeking a new permanent camp in Leeds the courts are now sympathetic.”
Residents and councillors have been angered by Travellers moving to and from sites just a few hundred yards apart.
The injunction would be the second in Leeds – an area of Burley was protected by the courts last year.
Coun McKenna said: “I suspect more and more we will see these injunctions, if they are not in Armley the problem starts all over again somewhere else.”
He said he hoped the injunction would cover Wortley, parts of Holbeck and a large area of Armley.
At present unauthorised sites are subject to civil law - eviction notices last just three months.
Coun McKenna said that under the new injunction, unauthorised camps would be permanently banned and any set up on protected land could yield charges of illegal trespass.
The Government last month gave the council £1m for 12 new permanent Traveller pitches in Leeds.
Coun Peter Gruen, the council’s executive member neighbourhoods and housing, said council officers are making the application to Leeds County Court. They must prove camps are causing a problem at designated spots – making a city-wide injunction difficult.
Helen Jones, from Leeds Gypsy and Traveller Exchange, said: “We need to negotiate and we appreciate the efforts the council is making but I think punitive measures before we have more authorised places to go is frankly frightening. People need to accept that they need to be somewhere.”
Unauthorised camps have cost Leeds City Council nearly £2m in legal and clean-up costs since 2004.
Now councillors are briefing their legal team to bring in an injunction banning Travellers from Armley, Wortley and Holbeck.
The move would mean Travellers being hauled before the court if they set up illegal camps in the area – they could face a fine or prison. At the moment it is a civil offence, and councillors have to apply to the courts to move the Travellers.
Metal gates have already been erected to block off an area next to Wortley Towers, in Tong Road, New Wortley, where Travellers recently set up an unauthorised camp.
Coun Jim McKenna (Lab, Armley) said: “I don’t know why it’s not been done before, the cumulative impact is something that’s got us talking again as it’s had some publicity.
“As we are actively seeking a new permanent camp in Leeds the courts are now sympathetic.”
Residents and councillors have been angered by Travellers moving to and from sites just a few hundred yards apart.
The injunction would be the second in Leeds – an area of Burley was protected by the courts last year.
Coun McKenna said: “I suspect more and more we will see these injunctions, if they are not in Armley the problem starts all over again somewhere else.”
He said he hoped the injunction would cover Wortley, parts of Holbeck and a large area of Armley.
At present unauthorised sites are subject to civil law - eviction notices last just three months.
Coun McKenna said that under the new injunction, unauthorised camps would be permanently banned and any set up on protected land could yield charges of illegal trespass.
The Government last month gave the council £1m for 12 new permanent Traveller pitches in Leeds.
Coun Peter Gruen, the council’s executive member neighbourhoods and housing, said council officers are making the application to Leeds County Court. They must prove camps are causing a problem at designated spots – making a city-wide injunction difficult.
Helen Jones, from Leeds Gypsy and Traveller Exchange, said: “We need to negotiate and we appreciate the efforts the council is making but I think punitive measures before we have more authorised places to go is frankly frightening. People need to accept that they need to be somewhere.”
Second cash boost for Travellers’ site - Wigan
A WIGAN Traveller camp is to get a second six-figure upgrade in little more than a year.
The £146,000 Government windfall – which comes on top of £200,000 national improvement grant for the same Bickershaw site last year – will secure its future.
The Whitehall announcement came just weeks after a council report said that official gypsy facilities in the borough needed expanding.
But this money will improve facilities at the existing 16 pitches at the Bickershaw Lane camp – all occupied by one extended family. It means that the local authority will now be unlikely to have to sell off its one and only council-owned traveller camp.
Communities Minister Andrew Stunell said the money will help Traveller families find sites where they want to live, and foster better relations with existing communities and councils.
But one local councillor today called into question the need to spend yet more cash, in straitened times, on a site which benefits so few people.
After the funding announcement, the authority issued a statement saying: “The site at Bickershaw Lane, provides 16 pitches for Gypsies and Travellers, and the long-term future of the site has been at risk due to the poor condition and design of the amenity blocks and the high utility costs which residents have to pay.”
It said the grant would pay for replacement amenity blocks with higher levels of insulation, more modern facilities and a direct electricity supply.
The statement added the bid was part of the council ‘s attempt to secure the long-term future of the site, which may involve developing alternative ways of managing the site to attract private investment/charitable funding, ensuring no financial cost to the council.
But independent councillor Bob Brierley said: “One has to ask whether this is the best use of resources in such difficult times.
“It’s only last year that £200,000 was spent on the Bickershaw site. How come it needs so much more, so soon, for a site which benefits one extended family?
“If the council can get money to do up a Travellers’ site it’s about time it brought residents’ facilities up to date too.”
The £60m nationwide fund will provide and improve 750 Traveller pitches nationwide. Mr Stunell said: “This funding will help provide sites in a way that reflects local need in consultation with the local community.
“We are ending the failed system where Whitehall attempted to dictate where sites went. Instead, we have brought back fairness to communities, putting Travellers and the settled population on a level playing field. ”
The toilet and shower lock at Bickershaw date back to the site’s 1974 opening, and it was feared that if money was not found to improve the facilities, the cash-strapped council might have to sell it to a private company or a Traveller syndicate.
A recent report to Wigan Council suggested the borough needed to double its number of Gypsy sites.
The first local Gypsy and Traveller Policy is being drawn up to generate greater understanding between settled and transient communities.
Specialists from the Association of Greater Manchester Authorities have calculated that the council should be providing at least 39 new traveller pitches and an additional 23 fairground showman winter spaces across the borough within the next three years.
These would be in addition to the three authorised sites at Bickershaw, Goose Green and Aspull Common, which offer a total of 43 pitches (the latter two are privately owned).
Part of the aim is to stop unauthorised use of inappropriate land by Travellers.
The £146,000 Government windfall – which comes on top of £200,000 national improvement grant for the same Bickershaw site last year – will secure its future.
The Whitehall announcement came just weeks after a council report said that official gypsy facilities in the borough needed expanding.
But this money will improve facilities at the existing 16 pitches at the Bickershaw Lane camp – all occupied by one extended family. It means that the local authority will now be unlikely to have to sell off its one and only council-owned traveller camp.
Communities Minister Andrew Stunell said the money will help Traveller families find sites where they want to live, and foster better relations with existing communities and councils.
But one local councillor today called into question the need to spend yet more cash, in straitened times, on a site which benefits so few people.
After the funding announcement, the authority issued a statement saying: “The site at Bickershaw Lane, provides 16 pitches for Gypsies and Travellers, and the long-term future of the site has been at risk due to the poor condition and design of the amenity blocks and the high utility costs which residents have to pay.”
It said the grant would pay for replacement amenity blocks with higher levels of insulation, more modern facilities and a direct electricity supply.
The statement added the bid was part of the council ‘s attempt to secure the long-term future of the site, which may involve developing alternative ways of managing the site to attract private investment/charitable funding, ensuring no financial cost to the council.
But independent councillor Bob Brierley said: “One has to ask whether this is the best use of resources in such difficult times.
“It’s only last year that £200,000 was spent on the Bickershaw site. How come it needs so much more, so soon, for a site which benefits one extended family?
“If the council can get money to do up a Travellers’ site it’s about time it brought residents’ facilities up to date too.”
The £60m nationwide fund will provide and improve 750 Traveller pitches nationwide. Mr Stunell said: “This funding will help provide sites in a way that reflects local need in consultation with the local community.
“We are ending the failed system where Whitehall attempted to dictate where sites went. Instead, we have brought back fairness to communities, putting Travellers and the settled population on a level playing field. ”
The toilet and shower lock at Bickershaw date back to the site’s 1974 opening, and it was feared that if money was not found to improve the facilities, the cash-strapped council might have to sell it to a private company or a Traveller syndicate.
A recent report to Wigan Council suggested the borough needed to double its number of Gypsy sites.
The first local Gypsy and Traveller Policy is being drawn up to generate greater understanding between settled and transient communities.
Specialists from the Association of Greater Manchester Authorities have calculated that the council should be providing at least 39 new traveller pitches and an additional 23 fairground showman winter spaces across the borough within the next three years.
These would be in addition to the three authorised sites at Bickershaw, Goose Green and Aspull Common, which offer a total of 43 pitches (the latter two are privately owned).
Part of the aim is to stop unauthorised use of inappropriate land by Travellers.
Plans for new pitches at cleared Dale Farm
TRAVELLERS are submitting plans for nine new caravan pitches on the cleared Dale Farm site.
The move, which could lead to a fresh round of legal appeals if refused, comes as Basildon Council is set to take court action against the owners of a small number of caravans which were pulled back on to Dale Farm on Thursday.
Crays Hill residents spoke of their dismay at the prospect of more appeals, as the council still tries to get on top of overcrowding problems on the legal site.
David McPherson-Davis, a Ramsden Crays parish councillor, said: “I don’t see how this can go back to an appeal. It has been all the way to the High Court and they keep losing.
“This needs sorting because there is a real problem now with rubbish being dumped on the old site.”
Campaigners Grattan Puxon and Stuart Hardwicke-Carruthers confirmed the new pitches would be on the site of the former scrapyard at Dale Farm, in its north-eastern corner.
The hardstanding and fences for the pitches are already in place because of the High Court ruling before the eviction, which specified what the council was legally able to demolish.
Mr Puxon said: “The hardstanding there, unlike that on some 40 other plots, has not been dug up.”
He said together with four other pitches at Dale Farm the council was unable to clear, there would be room for all the families currently breaching occupancy levels on the legal site and in Oak Lane.
Council leader Tony Ball said: “The application would be smaller, so it would have to be considered in the usual manner and we can’t pre-empt it. But our views on the green belt are well known.”
The move, which could lead to a fresh round of legal appeals if refused, comes as Basildon Council is set to take court action against the owners of a small number of caravans which were pulled back on to Dale Farm on Thursday.
Crays Hill residents spoke of their dismay at the prospect of more appeals, as the council still tries to get on top of overcrowding problems on the legal site.
David McPherson-Davis, a Ramsden Crays parish councillor, said: “I don’t see how this can go back to an appeal. It has been all the way to the High Court and they keep losing.
“This needs sorting because there is a real problem now with rubbish being dumped on the old site.”
Campaigners Grattan Puxon and Stuart Hardwicke-Carruthers confirmed the new pitches would be on the site of the former scrapyard at Dale Farm, in its north-eastern corner.
The hardstanding and fences for the pitches are already in place because of the High Court ruling before the eviction, which specified what the council was legally able to demolish.
Mr Puxon said: “The hardstanding there, unlike that on some 40 other plots, has not been dug up.”
He said together with four other pitches at Dale Farm the council was unable to clear, there would be room for all the families currently breaching occupancy levels on the legal site and in Oak Lane.
Council leader Tony Ball said: “The application would be smaller, so it would have to be considered in the usual manner and we can’t pre-empt it. But our views on the green belt are well known.”
Inquiry into Gypsy site plan - Salisbury
A PLANNING inspector is considering an application to overturn Wiltshire Council’s decision to refuse permission to allow land in Salisbury to be used as a site for Gypsy homes.
David Cooper submitted a planning application to Wiltshire Council for retrospective permission for three mobile homes already on the land at Hillbilly Acre on Southampton Road, along with five new ones.
But more than 170 people living nearby objected to the plan and the council’s southern area planning committee refused planning permission on July 28.
A hearing into the application will opened at Salisbury City Hall today.
David Cooper submitted a planning application to Wiltshire Council for retrospective permission for three mobile homes already on the land at Hillbilly Acre on Southampton Road, along with five new ones.
But more than 170 people living nearby objected to the plan and the council’s southern area planning committee refused planning permission on July 28.
A hearing into the application will opened at Salisbury City Hall today.
Meriden Gypsy protest camp decision due
Councillors are due to decide whether to evict residents who set up their own camp in protest at an unauthorised Gypsy site in the West Midlands.
An unauthorised Gypsy camp was set up in Meriden on 30 April 2010.
Villagers then set up their own encampment in Eaves Green Lane, Meriden, in protest at the Gypsy site.
Solihull Borough Council is due to decide later whether to order the removal of the Residents Against Inappropriate Development (RAID) camp.
RAID members have been taking it in turns to hold a continuous 24-hour vigil at the camp since they set it up.
RAID spokesman David McGrath said: "The council should give us more time to finish our campaign."
The council has said it takes issue with the structure of the protest camp.
Mr McGrath said: "The council should not waste taxpayers' money taking enforcement action against us.
"This is about residents standing up for themselves and saying 'we will not be moved' - this type of abuse happens all around the country but in Meriden we are drawing a line in the sand.
"We won't break the law because there is no law against us sitting on our own grass verges to continue our protest."
Joseph Jones from the Gypsy Council said: "I don't know many councils that would have allowed them to stay there. If it was to say they're allowed to stay, we'd have to ask why."
Villagers set up the camp in the gateway to a builder's yard in 2010 to monitor the Travellers and protest against their site.
Travellers on a nearby plot lost an appeal to stay on the greenbelt land in October last year.
They had applied for retrospective permission to build eight permanent pitches for their caravans, but the council refused planning permission, and the appeal upheld the council's decision.
Mr McGrath said: "We will only leave [our protest camp] when we see enforcement against the illegal site."
An unauthorised Gypsy camp was set up in Meriden on 30 April 2010.
Villagers then set up their own encampment in Eaves Green Lane, Meriden, in protest at the Gypsy site.
Solihull Borough Council is due to decide later whether to order the removal of the Residents Against Inappropriate Development (RAID) camp.
RAID members have been taking it in turns to hold a continuous 24-hour vigil at the camp since they set it up.
RAID spokesman David McGrath said: "The council should give us more time to finish our campaign."
The council has said it takes issue with the structure of the protest camp.
Mr McGrath said: "The council should not waste taxpayers' money taking enforcement action against us.
"This is about residents standing up for themselves and saying 'we will not be moved' - this type of abuse happens all around the country but in Meriden we are drawing a line in the sand.
"We won't break the law because there is no law against us sitting on our own grass verges to continue our protest."
Joseph Jones from the Gypsy Council said: "I don't know many councils that would have allowed them to stay there. If it was to say they're allowed to stay, we'd have to ask why."
Villagers set up the camp in the gateway to a builder's yard in 2010 to monitor the Travellers and protest against their site.
Travellers on a nearby plot lost an appeal to stay on the greenbelt land in October last year.
They had applied for retrospective permission to build eight permanent pitches for their caravans, but the council refused planning permission, and the appeal upheld the council's decision.
Mr McGrath said: "We will only leave [our protest camp] when we see enforcement against the illegal site."
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