Squatters move into abandoned office block, and show no sign of moving on

Published: 13 September, 2012
BY SAM THOMSON

THE government has made it illegal for squatters to occupy residential properties but in an abandoned building in Holborn a group has taken up residence and shows no sign of moving on.

The four-storey office block at 24 Gray’s Inn Road was formerly a commercial property so the squatters say the new law does not affect them.
The squatters have barricaded the only entrance after police said they would be evicted.

A 21-year-old, “Liam”, said: “When I first came to London I started squatting because it is so expensive to rent and I couldn’t get shelter otherwise.

“Now I can’t sign on to housing benefit or find work because I lost all my documents in a previous squat when I was forced to leave in the middle of the night.”

Some Occupy London activists evicted from the Finsbury and St Paul’s protest camps stay at the office block. They are mostly young and many said they could not get welfare benefits so use squatter networks for shelter and support.

The 24 Gray’s Inn Road building was formerly known as Palestinian Place, a centre set up in support of Palestine.

A planning application for the building was submitted to Camden Council at the beginning of the year but no action has been taken since, and the developer could not be contacted for comment.