Hunt calls for action after traveller sites appear

Jeremy Hunt is the MP for for Godalming and Ash in Surrey

Former Chancellor Jeremy Hunt has called for action to be taken against "unauthorised encampments" in Surrey.

It comes after several traveller sites have been built without permission on greenbelt land across the county.

The MP for Godalming and Ash said residents in Bramley and Shalford had contacted him about an "unauthorised development" in a field in Unstead Lane.

Guildford and Waverley borough councils said they were reviewing enforcement options "as a priority" but adding they could not prevent the activity.

"We will react and manage it as quickly as possible," the councils added.

'Absolutely infuriating'

In a post on social media, Hunt said that residents were asking why "so little action" was being taken to address the sites, which were appearing with increasing frequency.

"It is absolutely infuriating to see the law being ignored this way – and the people who do it getting away scot-free," he said.

The non-profit organisation Friends, Families and Travellers previously said official provision of spaces for travellers was "virtually non-existent".

"Without somewhere safe to stop, families are denied access to vital services like sanitation, healthcare and education," they said.

An unauthorised development has been set up in Unstead Lane

Hunt added that he had "urgently" requested a meeting with heads at Guildford and Waverley borough councils.

He said it was "not good enough" that residents and councillors in Bramley and Shalford had not received a response to their pleas for assistance over the weekend.

The Conservative MP warned "drawn-out" enforcement processes risked "consuming vast amounts of council time and money, while the local community continues to suffer the consequences."

"Early intervention and decisive action such as promptly issuance of a stop notice would help prevent situations like this from worsening, yet no one seems to want to do anything," he added.

Catherine Sayer, leader of Tandridge District Council (TDC), warned earlier this week that the continued construction of unauthorised traveller sites could spark "serious unrest" in Surrey.

TDC said the High Court had granted an "out of hours" interim injunction against a property owner and other people at a site in Newchapel.

"This prevents any further development of the site without planning permission," the authority said.