Rough Sleepers Evicted From Empty Building

Rough sleepers who have taken refuge in a disused building in central London face an uncertain future after a court approved their immediate eviction.

Activists established the makeshift shelter in the four-storey Sofia House on Great Portland Street on March 1 as the so-called Beast from the East hit the UK. Dubbed the Sofia Solidarity Centre (SCC), the centre saw up to 200 rough sleepers arrive each night to sleep as freezing conditions blanketed the city in snow.

Last Wednesday, however, in a hearing that ran for more than four hours, the London County Court granted the building’s owner, W1 Developments, a summary application for possession, which means the activists could be evicted at any time – just as temperatures were about to drop once again. Michael Cooper, who represented the SCC in the court, declined to comment on the decision to HuffPost UK. He said the group would collectively decide what to do next.

Following the decision London Mayor Sadiq Khan issued a statement saying his office had spoken to Westminster Council to ensure “help is at hand” for those now requiring somewhere to sleep. An offer of the ‘No Second Night Out’ service as an “extra protection” had been offered, he said.

SCC’s argument to remain in the building centred around an oral “licence” it believed it was granted by Mario Escobar, the building’s handyman, which they audio recorded. Escobar had agreed to allow the group to stay over the weekend, the court heard, despite being concerned he might lose his job. Escobar also told SCC activists he did not want to return on Monday, March 5, to see 70-80 people on the premises.

Representatives for SCC said that given conditions are expected to plummet below zero again the agreement was still in play. Heavy snow showers are expected to hit London and the southeast last Thursday as “the Beast from the East 2.0” was expected to hit. Forecasters warned the conditions could spark more travel chaos and power cuts.

Another pillar of SCC’s argument in court on Wednesday was the impact the eviction would have on the rough sleepers occupying the building and their rights under the European Convention on Human Rights to life, a home, assembly and protest. Arguing on behalf of SCC, Andrew Marlow said the eviction would mean hundreds of people would be “exposed to the risk of illness, even death”. The building, he said, was the perfect place to house people as it had been vacant for five years. He urged the judge to “prioritise” the rough sleepers’ right to freedom of expression over private property rights.

But in delivering his determination Judge Saunders told the court that “no one can deny the issue of homelessness needs to be taken seriously”, but concluded SCC did not have the right to occupy a private building.