Traveller who bought field in stockbroker belt village, tarmacked over it and moved in caravans can live there because moving him would breach HIS human rights

A traveler who is ordered to leave a field after purchasing it, pouring asphalt on it, and moving with caravans and caravans can live there for the time being, since moving it would violate his human rights.

Miles Martin Connors, 45, and his family caused chaos when they descended on the picturesque Kent village of Sundridge over the Easter weekend.

In a military-style ‘land grab’, up to 25 trucks arrived with tonnes of rubble on Good Friday and dumped it on an acre of land.

They then used diggers and machinery to transform the green space into a sturdy caravan site.

But their plans came to a temporary halt on Easter Sunday when their three-bedroom static caravan, loaded onto a lorry, became stuck on the countryside lane close to the site.

Angry locals protesting against the work could not believe that one of them was arrested by the police instead of the traveller.

Now bosses at Sevenoaks District Council have served Mr Connors with an enforcement notice ordering him to return the land to its previous state.

But under the Human Rights Act and the Equality Act, Mr Connors, his wife and three children were told they would be allowed to live there temporarily.

But their plans came to a temporary halt on Easter Sunday when their static three-bedroom caravan, loaded onto a lorry, became stuck on a rural lane close to the site.

In a military-style ‘land grab’, up to 25 trucks arrived with tonnes of rubble and dumped it on an acre of land on Good Friday

Mr Connors, who owns the field he bought at auction for £167,000 last October, was told he could live there for 56 days until June 2.

There is an exemption under the Temporary Suspension Notice (TSN) that allows him to stay for eight weeks.

They will be allowed to continue living there, using only two of the four vehicles currently on site.

TSN also prevents him from doing any engineering work or development on the land and prohibits him from connecting to utilities such as water and electricity.

Under the Enforcement Notice, Mr Connors was told he must remove all large debris, caravans and other vehicles and return the site to its original condition by 10 August.

He was also ordered to remove the tough grass and replant the field with a mixture of wild fescue by that date.

One villager said last night: ‘It is absolutely normal for travelers, with little respect for the human rights of law-abiding residents, to use the Human Rights Act to game the system.

‘This is ridiculous. Everybody is angry but the local authorities seem powerless because the law is on their side.’

Another angry resident said: ‘We have seen very similar cases all over the country and councils never seem to manage to enforce planning rules.

‘Instead, they become embroiled in a protracted legal battle that ends with travelers finding their own way.

‘I’m sick to death of this. ‘Why should we listen to the rules for a bunch of anti-social people to destroy the countryside we live in?’

Another said: ‘The law is complete nonsense and unless it is changed people like us will always suffer.’

Sevenoaks MP and shadow education secretary Laura Trott said: ‘As I have previously stated, the only way to deal effectively with unauthorized developments is to change the law to prevent retrospective planning applications being made where unauthorized development has taken place.

‘So I asked for a meeting with the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government and invited him to Sevenoaks to see the impact such developments have on the community.

‘I will continue to work with everyone to tackle this problem. ‘The status quo must not continue.’

While city offices remained closed, diggers and machinery rolled under the cover of darkness until workers pounded the jumbled walls into solid

Static house and accompanying caravan in the village of Sundridge, Kent.

Locals in a Kent village watch as the lorry carrying the traveler’s house gets stuck on the Kent lane leading to the area

Kent Police faced charges of ‘aiding and abetting’ travelers’ ‘land grabbing’ by helping them move the truck and static house to the site.

One local resident said: ‘The police didn’t do a good job at all, they escorted almost everything.

‘There were people on top of pickup trucks carrying chainsaws cutting down branches to get through; Everything was a complete mess.

‘We all have to comply with planning laws and regulations wherever we are, so it’s not right for someone to rush all of this.’

A Sevenoaks District Council spokesman said: ‘Following concerns raised by local residents we have visited the area a number of times.

‘We can confirm there are no additional caravans or mobile homes on site. The removal of plant and hardcore was welcomed. There have been no additional developments on the site since the launch of TSN.

‘The site is located in the Greenbelt and Kent Downs National Landscape. The trees on the site are not protected by the Tree Protection Order.

‘With the TSN and Enforcement Notice in place we can now make a robust assessment of the impact of unauthorized use and works and assess the potential harm to biodiversity and the public highway.’

James Evans, son of parish council chairman John Evans, was arrested at the scene on suspicion of obstructing a police officer and later released pending investigation.

Local resident James Evans was suspended by police for ‘obstructing an officer’ after telling two local residents to ignore their requests to move their cars, which blocked the truck from entering the site.

Inspector Elena Hall, of Kent Police, said: ‘I understand the strength of feeling in the Sundridge community that a HGV carrying a static caravan was blocked on New Road.

‘There has been some confusion about the purpose of our involvement and the role and legal powers of the police in such matters. To remedy the situation, complaints were received that the road was closed, this was not to facilitate access for heavy vehicles or for any other reason than to clear the road.

‘Issues relating to private land ownership and access are a civil matter and not something over which the police have jurisdiction; But we work with and support partner organizations who do this when requested.’