14 January 2008
Cllr John Reynolds, Chairman,
East of England Regional Assembly
Flomaton House, Flomaton,
Bury St Edmunds
Suffolk IP28 6EG.
14 January 2008
Allocation of Traveller Site Provision
Further to earlier representations, I wanted to renew my objection to site allocation being made on any other grounds than those of local traveller need. I understand that the East of England Regional Assembly may be considering allocating site provision on the basis of a minimum levy on each District Council. Clearly, this would not be based on local traveller need and is considered a thoroughly unfair method of allocation by my constituents. I have had the opportunity of meeting the main campaign groups in my Constituency in the past week and they are all very concerned at the thought that unsuitable sites may be allocated to travellers on the basis of this flawed approach.
North Hertfordshire has no traveller tradition and the research undertaken by the East of England Regional Assembly and its consultants show that travellers do not wish to be provided with sites in the sort of locations which have been identified in North Hertfordshire by the Scott Wilson process.
The effect of requiring a minimum levy on each Council of fifteen pitches would be that travellers would be put into sites which were not suitable for their needs.
I am sure that the Minister was right when she said in the House of Commons in June that provision should be made on the basis of traveller need and taking account of the traveller tradition. There is no such tradition in North Hertfordshire and this was reflected in the original proposal that there should be three extra pitches in the district. The idea that this should now be increased to fifteen in order to “spread the load” is unfair to travellers and to my constituents. I do hope that these concerns can be brought most strongly to the attention of members of the Regional Assembly before the final decision is taken.
Yours sincerely,
Oliver Heald MP