Sir, - The criticism of the Fine Gael Bill on unlawful encampments contained in your Editorial (November 7th), is flawed as it is based on a complete misunderstanding of either the current law or of what is now proposed. In fact, the Editorial seems to be based entirely on the content of a Fianna Fβil press statement.
The Bill is criticised on the basis of "swingeing" new measures such as the power given to local authorities to seize caravans which would be returned when specific charges relating to the cost of storage are paid. The reality is the law already gives this power to local authorities. The circumstances in which they can use these powers, however, are so circumscribed as to make them useless. It is precisely to address these very practical problems encountered by local authorities in implementing the current law which now requires new legislation.
Your Editorial comment also asserts that "local authorities would be compelled to take action". This is also factually incorrect.
Under the Fine Gael Bill all but one of its provisions give discretionary powers to local authorities to be used where circumstances such as the scale or location of the encampment warrant its removal. The only mandatory requirement is that the area in the vicinity of an existing official Traveller site be kept clear of illegal encampments.
What is not in dispute is that Travellers must be provided with permanent accommodation. However, even if that were to happen tomorrow, it would not solve the problem the Fine Gael Bill is designed to address.
Even when they have permanent accommodation, some Travellers take the view that they are free to wander and camp in any location no matter how inappropriate the location or disruptive their presence may be to the rest of the community.
Turning a 'blind eye' to the problems these encampments can cause is in nobody's interest. It certainly doesn't serve the travellers' cause to facilitate such points of tension with the rest of the community. The Fine Gael Bill seeks to achieve a balance between the rights of Travellers to accommodation and the rights of all other citizens to protection from gross disruption of their local amenities. Only those displaying the most extreme form of political correctness could now deny the need to re-strike that balance. - Yours, etc.,
Olivia Mitchell, TD, Fine Gael Dβil ╔ireann, Dublin2.