New law will criminalise squatters

[Tooj 17]

http://www.crisis.org.uk/news.php/499/new-law-will-criminalise-squatters

 

A new law will criminalise squatting, leaving vulnerable homeless people facing up to six month's imprisonment, or a fine they cannot pay, says Crisis.

The new Legal Aid, Sentencing and Punishment of Offenders Act will make it a criminal offence to squat in any residential property, including those that are empty and abandoned. Leslie Morphy, Chief Executive of Crisis said:

“There was already legal provision that police and councils could, and should, have used to remove individuals in the rare instances of squatting in someone’s home.

“And the new law also applies to empty homes - of which there are 720,000 in England alone, including many that are dilapidated and abandoned - criminalising homeless people when they are just trying to find a place off the streets.

“It will do nothing to address the underlying reasons why vulnerable people squat in the first place - their homelessness and a lack of affordable housing. Ultimately the Government needs to tackle why homeless people squat by helping not punishing them.”

[TheFlyingPedant 0]

What about sit down wipers?

[Meenzer 13982]

All part of the general assault. Francesca Martinez is awesome.

 

[Gemmill 34180]

They had some cunt of a lass on Radio 5 earlier. Her and her mate, both nurses, both working, decided they'd sooner get their accommodation for free, so are squatting. The fucking rage coming out of her at anyone that suggested that what she was doing was wrong!

[TheFlyingPedant 0]

I've heard that nurses are filthy but that's not what I had in mind.

[Renton 17628]

I dunno. If I came back from an extended holiday in Australia and found a few fit nurses in my bed (not J69) I think I'd be alright about it.

[Brock Manson 0]

I've known two people who were both squatters. One was a genuinely good bloke who I used to chef with, one of the nicest guys you could hope to meet. He even had massive dreads and was a vegan, but one who didn't give a ferk if you ate meat around him. Used to raid the bins of the local grocery shops for veg. Used to piss about making up and trying out new veggie recipes when it was quiet and having a good laugh.

 

The other was a guy who honestly was the biggest twat I've met in my life. Reckoned he found a cannabis plant in the back garden of his parents' house (where he often stayed), had floppy hair, did fuck all work and invited himself to my 22nd birthday BBQ and spent the whole time telling everyone why he was better than the rest of us because he was home-schooled. He was also called Gabriel and had a girlfriend called Tuloola. Fucking Gabriel and Tuloola!!!

 

Therefore my views on squatters are balanced - the ones who are genuinely doing no harm and only occupy places that are clearly never used are fine. The ones who just do it because they think they're being avant garde and sticking it to the rich man can go fuck themselves.

[Guest CabayeAye]

Both sound like twats TBF. I'd be fucking livid if I paid for food and found out the bloke who cooked it was a feral bin ripper. Hardly the most hygenic sounding bloke.

 

Brilliant news for property owners though.

[wolfy 12]

Deciding to criminalise squatter now is a joke, as it should have been a criminal offence since the start. It's basically burglary.

[Kitman 2188]

I suppose I have double standards. On the one hand I respect people's property. On the other hand I can sympathise if a homeless person squats when the alternative is sleeping under a bridge. The only people I've met who were squatters were pretty desperate characters; I wouldn't be impressed if a regular person did it just to dodge rent.