Loitering within tent: protesters in Glasgow set to move east

Glasgow City Council is today seeking “immediate authority to evict” the protesters who have set up tents in the centre of the city.

Protesters in Edinburgh said they would offer support to their counterparts in Glasgow and invite them to join the tented community in St Andrew Square.

One protester, Duck Lamond, 21, from Fife, said he expected the Edinburgh camp to grow if the Glasgow protesters were evicted.

“I think the people who are left behind will get on a bus and come here,” he said.

Meanwhile, Essential Edinburgh, which is responsible for administering the privately owned gardens in St Andrew Square, has confirmed that it is considering its legal options.

There were about 30 tents dotted around the impromptu protest camp yesterday, which has sprung up around the Melville Monument and opposite the historic headquarters of the Royal Bank of Scotland in Edinburgh.

A tented kitchen was serving up plates of hot haggis while protesters at an information desk offered explanations of the demonstration to passers-by.

A hand-painted banner draped around the base of the monument read: “Humanity: Don’t leave Home without it.”

Liam Allan, a musician from Edinburgh, who was wearing a bright-yellow high-visibility tabard labelled Love Police said: “We’re living here now. We’ve been through the excitement of the first and second week and now we are getting into the swing of things.”

Protesters stage regular litter patrols and the site is patrolled 24 hours a day by members of the “Love Police” in order to ensure the safety of those on site.

Camp members said they were holding regular evening meetings, were planning events for children and hoping to come to an agreement with Essential Edinburgh about sharing the space to make way for Christmas events, such as the nativity display which is due to come to the square on 27 November.

However, Essential Edinburgh, responsible for the gardens owned by 19 private landlords, yesterday confirmed that it was considering its legal options.

Chief executive Andy Neil said the protesters had behaved responsibly, but added: “There are increasing numbers of people who are coming on to us saying: ‘When are you going to do something about it?’

“We are in a slightly difficult situation because they are on private property as opposed to public property.”

Meanwhile, in Glasgow the approach of the festive season has led the council to seek authority in court to evict protesters from the heart of the city.

A spokesman for Glasgow City Council said: “After around two weeks of unsuccessful negotiations with Occupy Glasgow, the council has raised court proceedings to evict the protesters from George Square.

“A hearing has been fixed for Tuesday, 1 November, to listen to both sides of the case and, hopefully, grant our motion to evict them.

“We have offered Occupy Glasgow alternative locations and hope that an amicable solution can be found.

“However, we feel that due to forthcoming major events in George Square and the on-site preparations needed to make them happen, we have no other option than to take this course of action.”

The council has offered protesters alternative sites in Kelvingrove Park, Glasgow Green and Broomielaw Park – but the demonstrators have so far refused to budge.