Dale Farm struggle continues in court

Mr Justice Edwards-Stuart said he had yet to decide on any extension, but litigation should not be seen as "yet another springboard for delay."

Basildon Council had spent "substantial physical and financial resources," he said - around a third of its annual budget - and the courts had a duty to make sure valuable resources were not wasted.

But the residents' barrister Marc Willers told the judge that both his clients and the Dale Farm Solidarity Network were applying separately for judicial review.

It is understood they will argue the eviction process itself is "disproportionate."

The solidarity network's spokeswoman Ellen Wiles told the court that it was taking its own legal action on the basis that Basildon's zealous enforcement was "irrational."

Her group has been allowed to participate in the injunction hearings because their tents and scaffolding constitute part of the Dale Farm property.

The hearing continues on Monday, with Dale Farm resident Nora Sheridan telling reporters today that she and her neighbours were "praying for a good result."

"We're just keeping our fingers crossed," she said.

"We don't know what's going to happen."

The settlement at Cray's Hill in Essex is one of Britain's biggest traveller camps.

It is home to more than 1,000 people, with the disputed half of the site housing some 80 families.

Travellers have lived there since the early 1970s and legally own the land, but Basildon Council has repeatedly refused to permit housing on the site, saying the former scrapyard is technically protected greenbelt.

The residents say they have offered to relocate if the council provides new pitches, but say that their offer has fallen on deaf ears.

rorym@peoples-press.com