Irish Travellers unlawfully occupying a leisure centre car park must remove their caravans within five days, a High Court judge has ruled.
Mr Justice Huddleston rejected claims that evicting members of the community from the site in Magherafelt, Co Derry would breach their rights to a home and nomadic lifestyle.
Granting an order for possession of the land to Mid Ulster District Council, he said: “I am not satisfied that there are no alternative sites for these caravans.”
Proceedings were issued after a group of Travellers moved onto the council-owned site at Greenvale Leisure Centre in March.
Concerns were raised over potential health and safety issues, along with traffic congestion at a car park used by members of the public and staff from neighbouring schools.
The council strongly denied claims of discrimination, insisting that the Travellers were fully entitled to access the leisure centre’s facilities in the same way as all others.
Lawyers for those occupying the land argued that forcing them to move would violate Article 8 of the European Convention on Human Rights.
The court heard disputed allegations that it would render them homeless due to a lack of suitable locations for their caravans.
During exchanges Mr Justice Huddleston was told 42 spaces are available at recreational caravan parks owned by the council.
But according to Kelly Laverty, accommodation and policy officer for a non-governmental organisation which provides support to Irish Travellers’ in Northern Ireland, pitches at holiday locations would not solve the problem.
She insisted longer-term arrangements which still allow members of the community to exercise rights to be nomadic are required.
However, Mr Justice Huddleston held that the Travellers have no entitlement to remain on the site indefinitely.
With no timescale offered for when they plan to move on, he said Article 8 does not provide a general right to a home in a particular location.
“The plaintiff is a council who is the legal owner of the site with unlawful occupants,” the judge stressed.
He also ruled that a local authority seeking recovery of its land could not be equated with discrimination.
“The council has made it clear that it is happy to make the car park and adjacent leisure centre facilities available to the defendants on exactly the same basis as other members of the public,” he pointed out.
Mr Justice Huddleston confirmed: “The action amounts to a proportionate means of achieving a legitimate aim, it is not discriminatory and will be granted subject to a stay of five calendar days to allow the defendants to move to an alternative location.”