SQUATTERS

When an uninvited intruder moving onto his land complete with car and caravan, Alan Roberts decided to take matters into his own hands. While the illegal tenant was still soundly asleep, Mr Roberts got into his JCB forklift. First, he picked up the man's Vauxhall Cavalier from its spot on one of his fields and dumped it outside his land. Then he returned to scoop up the caravan, still housing the unsuspecting squatter.

As it was lifted into the air, the man appeared at the window looking rather startled to discover he was suddenly airbourne. Mr Roberts said it was the second time in a week that the mystery man had parked the vehicles on his land.

Spokeswoman for Humberside Police, Lisa Fleming, said, "Police attended but it is a civil dispute between the landowner and the vehicle and caravan owner. Officers spoke to both parties and the caravan owner volunteered to move his vehicle within 24 hours." (Source: Mail on Sunday, Sep/06)

Fifteen squatters occupied an 18th Century mansion - valued at up to £20m, in one of London's most desirable areas, covered it in graffiti and used it for raves. One squatter, Nick, from Munich, said, "We intend to stay here for as long as possible and use it as a major party location." He added, "This building is fantastic, it's free and nobody is using it." Fellow resident Julie, a French waitress, said, "It's well known in Europe that, thanks to English law, we are given plenty of time to get out." By moving in, the squatters became the recognised occupiers of the property. It would be illegal for the owners to take back posession of the house without a court order. The Metropolitan Police cannot act unless there has been an allegation of criminal damage.

Squatters have started to make minor repairs to the former Smiths Clockworks in Queen Street that they have occupied for months. They said their aim was to bring the state of the derelict building to the public's attention. Its current owner Joseph De Winter, who lives in London, said he did not want to comment on the issue. The building has been empty for more than a decade and was purchased for £347,000 in 2001. The squatters have made minor repairs to part of the roof. The clockworks was founded by John Smith in 1856.

John Cadwallader, chief executive of Derby CityScape, said the building should be brought to the attention of English Heritage. He saod the protesters have a good objective but many building projects were being shelved now because of the economic situation and the state of the property market. The original planning permission for the property, which has now expired, included refurbishment of the building. Squatter Martin said there had been "a load of important historic events that have happened here" including clockmaker John Smith and Sons taking over the site. (Source: BBC News, Feb/10)

Thousands of illegal immigrants have been granted "squatters' rights" to remain in Britain permanently after proving they have lived here for 14 years. A little-known rule, introduced by Labour in 2003, allows illegal immigrants to claim "indefinite leave to remain" if they manage to live in Britain's black economy for long enough or are failed asylum seekers who manage to avoid deportation. After 14 years they can apply to the Home Office which considers factors such as "compassionate circumstances, strength of connection to the UK and previous criminal record", before deciding whether an illegal immigrant will be allowed to stay. If successful, the immigrant will then be allowed full access to the welfare state and be eligible to apply for a British passport.

Since rules changed in April 2003, 7,245 illegals have won the right to live here permanently, more than 1,000 a year on average. It is likely that many paid no income tax during the 14 years they spent in Britain. The Home Office estimated in 2005 that the illegal immigrant population in Britain was between 310,000 and 570,000 but other groups such as Migrationwatch UK, which campaigns against mass immigration, have put the figure far higher. Migrationwatch UK now believes the true number of illegal immigrants could be as high as one million. One immigration law adviser said, "I'm surprised this rule still survives, to be honest. It is an anomaly when compared with the rest of the Government's policy which purports to be getting tough with immigrants who have irregular status."

Damian Green, the shadow immigration minister, said, "What disturbs me most is how many more people will be able to establish this type of squatters' rights to stay in this country. Rewarding illegal behaviour is always bad, and there ought to be a lot more effort put into stopping people getting to this 14 year level. One of the reasons why we want to set up a specialist border police force is to prevent people being able to stay here for many years entirely below the radar." Sir Andrew Green, the chairman of Migrationwatch, said, "It is wrong in principle that people who have been undercutting British workers for many years and often paying no tax should be granted full access to our welfare state. This is a reward for crime, provided you get away with it for long enough."

A Home Office spokesman said, "Not all applications for indefinite leave to remain through the long residence rule will be granted. They are considered on a case-by-case basis, taking into account the strength of connection to the UK, previous criminal record and compassionate circumstances, and so on." He added that it was expected that the number of people granted indefinite leave to remain under the rule would fall as asylum claims were dealt with more quickly. One immigration law adviser said, "I'm surprised this rule still survives, to be honest. It is an anomaly when compared with the rest of the Government's policy which purports to be getting tough with immigrants who have irregular status."

The rules allowing illegal immigrants to claim residence after 14 years were formalised by the Home Office in 2003 but previously existed as a loose concession. The arrangements mirror the legal status of "squatters' rights", formally known as adverse possession, in English and Welsh law. These rules say that anyone who has occupied land or property for 12 years can apply to be registered as owner. The 14 years which illegal immigrants have to wait before claiming indefinite leave to remain in Britain is only four years longer than the period of time required of lawful immigrants. Those who stay here on a visa or who are granted refugee status only have to wait 10 years before applying for the same concession, if they have been continuously resident in Britain. (Source: Sunday Telegraph, Feb/10)