On the 27th of July at 3 pm Rodney Bickerstaffe, former General Secretary
of Unison and President of War on Want will visit Dale Farm Travellers' site
in Essex. The Travellers on the site face eviction and Conservative controlled
Basildon Council has agreed to fund a three million pound forced eviction.
Rodney Bickerstaffe is a long standing campaigner for Gypsy and Traveller
rights and he will be giving support to the following letter from the Gypsy
and Traveller Law Reform Coalition.
For more information on Rodney Bickerstaffe visit: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rodney_Bickerstaffe
Letter to Basildon Council From The Gypsy and Traveller Law Reform Coalition
The Gypsy and Traveller Law Reform Coalition (GTLRC) is an umbrella group
of Gypsies, Irish Travellers and New Travellers, which lobbies the Government
to raise the inclusion of Gypsies and Travellers and address their accommodation
needs. The GTLRC is considered to be a focal point of contact with the Gypsy
and Traveller community by the Government and other agencies. The Gypsy and
Traveller Law Reform Coalition recently won the Liberty human rights award.
The GTLRC notes with concern that Basildon Council has decided to support
a forced eviction at Dale Farm Travellers' site, which will cost approximately
three million pounds. If the council is unwilling to let the Travellers stay
where they are it should leave the Travellers where they are until it has
completed the job of assessing Traveller accommodation needs as councils are
now obliged to do with that of the settled community and then identify land
Travellers can buy. Alternatively the council could set up a site using Housing
Corporation money which will shortly be made available for such purposes.
This will enable the Travellers to move off the disputed land without three
million pounds being spent evicting them.
To waste three million pounds in such circumstances on a forced eviction is
a criminal waste of money, a fraction of this would create an alternative
site. Also we need to think of the human cost. An eviction at Dale Farm will
be the largest eviction that has taken place in the UK and will affect large
numbers of people. Many of the Travellers have serious health problems and
cannot live on the side of the road. Children who are attending school for
the first time will also find it hard to continue their schooling if they
are on the side of the road. Members of the settled community will also be
inconvenienced by homeless Travellers trying to find a stopping place whereever
they can. In the name of humanity and common sense the council needs to have
a rethink on this matter. We urge them to do so and would be happy to meet
council officials and representatives to find a sensible way forward.
For more information contact:
Andrew Ryder
The Gypsy and Traveller Law Reform Coalition
Winners of the Liberty Human Rights Award
Tel 07 985 684 921
Visit our website:
http://www.travellerslaw.org.uk/