Britain set for 'hundreds' of new gypsy sites

Britain set for 'hundreds' of new gypsy sites
Hundreds of new gipsy camps could be built throughout Britain, it was claimed last night. Work on some of the proposed 7,500 extra pitches - some which can hold up to three families - could go ahead within weeks, it was reported. The government is set to announce £97million in grants for councils to provide new campsites and upgraded existing ones for travellers. In return, the residents would have to pay rent and council tax. snip http://tinyurl.com/67wjcv Oh yes, that's likely to happen.

This must be what the Daily Express was saying last week, about people's gardens being under threat of compulsory purchase?

Fury over £100million plan for hundreds of gipsy sites across the country By Michael Lea Last updated at 9:42 AM on 21st November 2008 http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1087942/Fury-100million-plan-hundreds-gipsy-sites-country.html Towns and villages across England are bracing themselves for 'bombshell' news on the location of hundreds of new and upgraded gipsy and traveller camps. Work on some of the proposed 7,500 extra pitches will get the go-ahead within weeks under a controversial £97million scheme. Targets imposed by the Government mean local authorities must provide a specified number of permanent sites with rubbish collection, running water, electricity and other services. In return travellers will have to pay rent and council tax. The pressure on councils has forced at least one to warn landowners of compulsory purchase. Others may follow suit. Figures for January this year show that there are currently 4,902 pitches on local authority sites, accommodating 6,696 caravans. But according to the charity Friends, Travellers and Families, there are around 25,000 gipsies and travellers who do not have fixed places to live. Communities minister Iain Wright is due to announce before Christmas which projects have won grants, covering spending to 2011. Each region has been given different deadlines to achieve their targets for new pitches dependent on the current availability of sites and the number of travellers, and predictions of how many more will arrive. Around a third of the money, £28million, is expected to go to the East of England region which is currently home to about a quarter of the country's travelling families but has only 16 per cent of official sites. Some £17million is being awarded to the South-East and £14million earmarked for the South-West, while £9.5million is set for the East Midlands, £7.5million for the West Midlands, £6million each for London, the North-West and Yorkshire and Humber, and £3million for the North-East. Last night the Tories pledged to scrap the Government's target of providing 7,500 additional spaces. Communities spokesman Eric Pickles blamed 'political correctness' for the proposed explosion in the number of official traveller camps. 'Communities across the country are going to face the bombshell of having a traveller camp dumped on their back yard, whether they like it or not,' he said. 'Councils are powerless to resist these regional targets, and are being bullied into building on the Green Belt or using compulsory purchase powers. 'It's not fair that hard-working families have to save up to get on to the housing ladder, while travellers get special treatment at taxpayers' expense.' <snip> Epping Forest District Council in Essex, which has been ordered to provide 49 extra pitches by 2012, says on its website that some sites may need to be on private land. It adds: 'Wherever possible, we would seek the owner's agreement, but as a last resort the option of Compulsory Purchase is there.' A spokesman for the Department of Communities and Local Government said: 'It's important we have enough authorised sites for gipsies and travellers to stop the vicious cycle of evictions from unauthorised sites that is costly to the taxpayer and impacts on the quality of life for the travelling community and the wider public.' snip

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