TRAVELLERS were booted out of Haslemere last week, just three hours after arriving in the town. Seven caravans arrived at Lion Green at around 3 pm last Thursday afternoon, with the intentions of staying for up to two weeks. However, Surrey Police and Haslemere Town Council sprung into action to remove the unwanted visitors caravans by 6 pm. The quick work by the police potentially saved the town council thousands of pounds in legal costs to remove the Irish travellers. Five police cars, four police vans and two dog units were at the green, along with almost 20 officers who ensured trouble did not flare up. As Lion Green is owned by Haslemere Town Council, it fell upon town clerk Mike O'Neil to approach the travellers, backed by police, and ask them to leave. Speaking as the events unfolded, Waverley councillor Jacquie Keen said: "The town clerk, Mike O'Neil, is down here and is going to talk to their leader and ask them politely to leave the green. "If they refuse, the police can invoke measures to force them to leave, which could include the use of tow trucks to remove them from the green." The travellers were then given until 6 pm to vacate the green before police could invoke Section 61 (1) of the Criminal Justice and Public Order Act 1995, meaning tow trucks would be used to remove them. However, they were reluctant to leave and despite starting to pack up at around 4-45 pm. they were still on the green at 5-45 pm. But the arrival of a tow truck five minutes later hurried matters up. By 5-57 pm, approximately three hours after their arrival, all the caravans had gone. Haslemere Town councillor Peter Isherwood ,who was also at the scene, said: "They were probably the same group who were camped at Thursley recently and then moved to the Devil's Punch Bowl. "Lion Green has been a respectable place for a long time and a lot of money has been spent on its upkeep. Haslemere Town Council clerk Mike O'Neil added: "If the police had let them stay here it would have been a potential flashpoint and they wanted to avoid that. "I believe there has already been one altercation this afternoon involving a child from the school and one of the travellers' children. "The main problem is that the green is meant for public use, but the travellers would have taken it over and made it their own." Police inspector Rob Harris was happy that any trouble was averted and that the travellers had left very quickly. He said: "Once we invoked our police powers, we had them under control. "To be fair to this group, they have bagged and boxed a lot of their rubbish and there doesn't appear to be any mess left." Members of the council were quick to praise the way in which the situation was handled by the police. Mrs Keen said: "It has been an excellent response from the police. Everyone was contacted quickly and they arrived here instantly. "This is what you call police efficiency at its best." Mr Isherwood added: "It was a very impressive response by the police, it was first class and was an excellent demonstration of police skills." John Harvey, a local resident and chairman of the Haslemere Police Community Partnership Group, praised the police work in a letter to The Herald. He said: "As a nearby resident, I was present, together with several neighbours, throughout most of the incident and wish to convey the appreciation felt by our community to Surrey Police and to our town councillors for the efficient resolution of a potentially most undesirable situation." After being removed from Lion Green, the travellers were offered a place at a special site in Reigate, but they refused claiming they did not get along with English gypsies. It is now believed they have left Surrey and moved over the border into Hampshire.
