I have been attempting to lodge an e petition with HM Government for several months but unfortunately the HM Gov Website has been blocking the request for a while because of technical problems.
These now seem to have been resolved and the Governments e petition website went live last week with a certain amount of interest shown by the national media. My e petition is an attempt to get the law changed on Travellers to allow an early eviction when they illegally occupy sites. Presently this trespass is a civil matter and requires a court order (which can often take several days) before an eviction takes place. This change would make such trespass a criminal offence and allow the Police the powers to evict Travellers immediately following a request from the landowner. This approach is used in the Irish Republic and appears to have been very effective in reducing this blight.
The recent unauthorised site in Gildersome is a clear reminder that firmer action needs to be taken and that this change is long over due. We cannot continue to publicly subsidise the poor behaviour communities have inflicted upon them by Travellers occupying land illegally.
You can support the petition by going to http://epetitions.direct.gov.uk/petitions/1309
