Gypsies and Travellers Debate

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Department: Department for Transport

Gypsies and Travellers

Lord Elystan-Morgan Excerpts
Tuesday 6th March 2012

(12 years, 9 months ago)

Lords Chamber
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Earl Attlee Portrait Earl Attlee
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My Lords, I would be very surprised if the appropriate Minister does not have discussions with the relevant organisations.

Lord Elystan-Morgan Portrait Lord Elystan-Morgan
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My Lords, is the Minister aware that about a quarter of a century ago a very distinguished High Court judge, the late Mr Justice Peter Pain, when hearing an application from a local authority in south Wales for an injunction to clear Gypsies from a lay-by said, “I will not grant this injunction because an injunction is an equitable remedy. To claim an equitable remedy you must be equitable. I will only grant the injunction to those local authorities which can show that they have taken seriously their statutory obligations in relation to Gypsies”.?

Earl Attlee Portrait Earl Attlee
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My Lords, the noble Lord makes an important and interesting point. It is much easier to have an unauthorised encampment removed if the local authority has already made appropriate provision.