"Shocking claim as to why illegal travellers were allowed to stay on public land in Nuneaton"

[dutchman]

They made a threat to the council



A leading councillor claimed travellers threatened to bring Nuneaton town centre to standstill if they weren't allowed to remain on a public car park.

That was the shocking revelation made at one of two extraordinary meetings held at Nuneaton and Bedworth Borough Council last night (Monday, October 8).

Councillor Barry Longden, cabinet member responsible for illegal encampments, explained the reason behind the unprecedented deal to allow the travellers to stay on the car park at the boys club.

He said town bosses were threatened with the chaos of 100 caravans flooding the roads of Nuneaton in a late night message from travellers.

Faced with allowing the group to remain or seeing the town gridlocked, officers struck the deal allowing the car park at the Boys' Club to remain occupied.

Last night, Cllr Longden admitted they made the wrong decision.

He told the meeting: “A message was received to these officers very late on the Monday evening and a decision was made because of what was said about them bringing 100 caravans on the roads of Nuneaton the following day if they did not get permission to stay.

“I think that was the wrong decision to let them stay, I was not able to be involved in that decision but I understand why it was made.

"It was the wrong decision for the right reason, because of the chaos that would have ensued.

“On the Wednesday of that week, because they wanted to bring 15 caravans here and we said only 12, they then said there would be 300 caravans on the roads of Nuneaton if we did not comply.

"I said ‘okay, we are not going to go any further with this, they can bring 300 if they wish’, the fact is they didn’t materialise. If they did materialise, it would have been a matter for the police to actually deal with in those circumstances.

“As it happened then, the agreement that was reached to allow them to stay was breached very quickly and then that agreement was withdrawn.

"We asked the police to exercise their powers and they refused, they said as far as they were concerned it was still a tolerated encampment.”

The council went on to seek court permission to evict the travellers but now it is widely known that the encampment left the Boys Club car park and moved just across the road, to the car park at the back of the Pingles Athletics stadium.

Now the council is having to start the legal process again.