Criminal Squtting Law Arrives Sat 1st Sep - Meeting in London Mon Aug 27th

[tony at cultureshop.org.uk]

Shit the law is coming in on September 1 after all....

ASS have called a meeting August 27... 
So meeting on Monday 27th August is now set for 
2pm, venue still being finalised.
http://www.squatter.org.uk/

SQUAT LAW CHANGE ALERT The new law on squatting 
(s144 LASPO 2012) will be coming into force on 
the 1st September 2012. Not everyone who is 
squatting, or considered by others to be 
squatting, will be affected by the new law, but 
people will need to be prepared to explain, quite 
forcefully at times, why they are not affected.

The wording of S144 starts:
(1)A person commits an offence if— (a) thee 
person is in a residential building as a 
trespasser having entered it as a trespasser, (b) 
the person knows or ought to know that he or she 
is a trespasser, and (c) the person is living in 
the building or intends to live there for any period.
(2)The offence is not committed by a person 
holding over after the end of a lease or licence 
(even if the person leaves and re-enters the building).

So Squatting is still legal in non-residential 
properties. A building is defined as 
'residential' if it is “designed or adapted, 
before the time of entry, for use as a place to 
live”. You are also not committing an offence 
if you have, or have had a tenancy or licence to 
live in the property, if you are not living or 
intending to live in the property, or if you 
don’t have any way to know you are a trespasser 
(in which case you probably wouldn’t be reading this).

Tenancies and licences do not have to be in 
writing, but if people have reason to think they 
may be accused of breaking the law it would be 
best to collect as much paperwork as possible. 
Tenancies and licences can also have been granted 
by a tenant of the owner, or by an agent, 
possibly without the owner’s knowledge (but they can check and return).

Any police officer would need to have reasonable 
suspicion that you (or anyone) have committed a 
crime, to force entry and to carry out an arrest, 
so it can be in your interests to explain 
otherwise. Explaining through a closed door or 
upstairs window is always preferable to letting them in.

Section 6 of the Criminal Law Act 1977 still 
applies against those trying to force entry without lawful authority.

The problem is that the new law gives further 
lawful authority to the police to enter if they 
suspect the offence is being committed.

Advisory Service for Squatters Correct as at 22nd August 2012.


22/8/12

The Statutory Instrument required to set a date 
for the commencement of the new law was quietly 
passed in July, to come into force on the 1st September. It is

The Legal Aid, Sentencing and Punishment of 
Offenders Act 2012 (Commencement No. 1) Order 2012, No. 1956 (C. 77)

and can be found at

http://www.legislation.gov.uk/uksi/2012/1956/made

and S144 at

http://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/2012/10/section/144

Squatting will remain legal under many 
circumstances and everyone is going to have to be 
prepared to explain how it is that they are NOT covered by the new law.

In brief, the law does not cover people in 
non-residential properties, people who have or 
have had a licence or tenancy, even if this has 
ended, and people who are not living in, or 
intending to live in the property (for example just visiting)

ASS has been working on, and will be publishing further guidance very soon.

Good luck everyone!

  




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