Squatters at closed Salford pub face 'unfair eviction'

Stuart Potts says squatters should be allowed to remain in the otherwise empty Eccles pub

An anti-homelessness campaigner says 16 squatters living illegally at a derelict Salford pub should be able to stay there.

Stuart Potts, who runs the Saving People Shelter Project, moved the group into the empty Unicorn Hotel in Eccles two months ago.

They now face eviction after the building's owners, the Wellington Pub Company, launched legal action.

Salford City Council urged homeless people to contact them for help.

Mr Potts, 38, said it was wrong for the building to lie empty at a time when people were in need of accommodation.

"I was homeless myself for a couple of years," he told the BBC. "You're only one pay cheque away from being homeless.

"I thought I'd start helping other people by putting a roof over their heads."

'Refugee Camp'

Mr Potts added: "I lost one of my friends - we both ended up on the streets. He died within a week. It's possible that could happen again.

"I don't think we are here illegally - it's not being used.

"Here they've got Sky TV, broadband - that I pay for - electric, warmth. All the facilities and utilities they need."

Salford City Council said that in the past year it had housed 13 people from squats in the city, and that 794 people had been through its "A Bed Every Night Service", which has been granted extra funding.

Mayor Paul Dennett said: "I would urge anyone considering using a squat for accommodation to approach the council - we can help and we will help."

But Mr Potts said he "wouldn't put a rat" in the council shelters and likened them to a "refugee camp" in which "30 to 35 people are bunked up".

The Wellington Pub Company refused to comment other than confirming a court hearing had been scheduled for 7 October.