Yet another green oasis is trashed by travellers
TRAVELLERS have sparked fury after parking half a dozen caravans at a common used by scores of families – and blighting it with dumped rubbish.
Deck chairs, gas cylinders and patio furniture can be seen scattered around the encampment at Ealing Common in west London. Residents described the incursion as an ‘aggressive takeover’ of a section of the 47acre open space.
Others spoke of their concern that even more rubbish might be left behind when the travellers move on. One wrote on Twitter: ‘The common has never felt so unsafe and the takeover has never been so aggressive.’
He insisted: ‘They know Ealing Council is a pushover and that’s why they come back time and time again.’
The resident added that the travellers had laid out doormats over the path residents used to cross the common.
Another said that until now, the common had been a rare area of calm in London, adding: ‘It should be possible to just arrest travellers straight away and if not, then the law needs changing, pronto.’ A spokesman for Ealing Council said: ‘The council’s community safety and environment teams are working together with the police to seek injunctions against those that are illegally settled on Ealing Common.
‘We appreciate that this does have an impact on local residents and we try to deal with each encampment as quickly as possible, while we look for longer-term solutions.’
Last month, a police force sparked fury after telling residents to have empathy with a group of 200 travellers they are trying to evict from their village in Surrey.
Surrey Police suggested on Twitter that residents should have sympathy for the travellers, posting: ‘Imagine how upsetting it would be, being uprooted every few days.’
Other Twitter users immediately pointed out that moving around to different locations was part of the traveller lifestyle.
The force later said its remark was supposed to encourage impartial behaviour and encourage ‘both sides of the discussion’.