'Case by case' pledge by new police chief after Dudley travellers row
The new police commander in Dudley says groups of travellers arriving in the borough will be dealt with on a "case by case" basis.
Chief Superintendent Anthony Tagg said he aims to work with travellers to "find a solution" to illegal camps – but said he will bring the full force of the law down when necessary.
His comments follow a row in November 2021 between Dudley Council and West Midlands Police over how to deal with travellers in the borough.
It was sparked when council chiefs requested police assistance after a group of travellers stayed at the Budden Road transit site in Coseley for longer than the 28 days allowed by law.
Ch Supt Kim Madill, the borough's police commander at the time, refused to support the council, citing concerns about the travellers' human rights.
Asked how travellers who outstayed their welcome would be dealt with under his watch, Ch Supt Tagg said: "I think it's important we work on a case by case basis and that we work with the travelling community to find a solution.
"Clearly, we have powers afforded to us by law, and if it's appropriate to utilise those powers then that's something we will do.
"The local authority here in Dudley has a transit site where travellers can go to. There's an awful lot of work we can do, in terms of working with the local authority and the traveller community so that issues are dealt with before they become too critical."
Last year's row ended up before the authority's standards committee following a complaint from the West Midlands Police and Crime Commissioner's office.
It found Dudley Council leader Patrick Harley to have been disrespectful to Ch Supt Madill, after he called for her to be reassigned over her "impartiality" and "woke politics".
She has since moved on from Dudley and was replaced by Claire Caddick on a temporary basis before Ch Supt Tagg's appointment.
