Consultation outcome

Strengthening police powers to tackle unauthorised encampments

From:: Home Office
Published: 5 November 2019
Last updated: 2 September 2021 — See all updates

Read the full outcome

Government response to the consultation 'Strengthening police powers to tackle unauthorised encampments' (accessible version)

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Government response to the consultation 'Strengthening police powers to tackle unauthorised encampments'

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Ymateb y Llywodraeth i’r Ymgynghoriad ‘Cryfhau Pwerau’r Heddlu i Fynd i’r Afael â Gwersylloedd Anawdurdodedig’ (accessible version)

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Ymateb y Llywodraeth i’r Ymgynghoriad ‘Cryfhau Pwerau’r Heddlu i Fynd i’r Afael â Gwersylloedd Anawdurdodedig’

PDF, 386 KB, 33 pages

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Detail of outcome

This is the government response to the consultation ‘Strengthening police powers to tackle unauthorised encampments’. It follows the government response in 2018 to the consultation ‘Powers for dealing with unauthorised developments and encampments’.

In this response we have set out the next steps that the government will take which include:

introducing a new criminal offence of intentional trespass
amending the Criminal Justice and Public Order Act 1994

Original consultation

Consultation description

We would like to consult on measures to criminalise the act of trespassing when setting up an unauthorised encampment in England and Wales.

We would also like to consult on what an alternative approach to this could be:

amending section 62A of the Criminal Justice and Public Order Act 1994 to permit the police to direct trespassers to suitable authorised sites located in neighbouring local authority areas
amending sections 61 and 62A of the Criminal Justice and Public Order Act 1994 to increase the period of time in which trespassers directed from land would be unable to return from 3 months to 12 months
amending section 61 of the Criminal Justice and Public Order Act 1994 to lower the number of vehicles needing to be involved in an unauthorised encampment before police powers can be exercised from six to two or more vehicles
amending section 61 of the Criminal Justice and Public Order Act 1994 to enable the police to remove trespassers from land that forms part of the highway

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