Above Photo: Squatters hold a sign with “The homeless strike back” from a balcony of the Royal Mint building. Photo: London News Pictures
Group takes over site where British coins were manufactured to highlight how empty buildings could provide shelter for rough sleepers
A group of 20 anti-capitalist squatters have taken over the former Royal Mint Building in protest over Britain’s homelessness problem.
The squatters, wearing V for Vendetta masks and hanging out of windows, have set up camp in the grade II-listed Johnson Smirke building, in the City of London, and are refusing to leave.
The Royal Mint building, located opposite the Tower of London on the border of the City of London Photo: London News Pictures
They claim they will only be removed when the owners of the building arrive with a High Court order.
Some of the protesters have taken to the roof of the building while others have hung banners with messages such as ‘anticapitalista’, as well as adorning the walls with ‘End World Debt’ posters.
Police are believed to be aware of the problem at the complex, once home to the Barclays Bank Executive Board, but the squatters say they will use the opportunity to raise awareness about the country’s lack of homes.
Pete Phoenix, 45, from Camden Mothership, one of four organisations occupying the building, told the Mail Online: “There are 104,000 homeless children in this country which is completely unacceptable when there are 1.5 million empty buildings in the UK.
Police and protesters meet outside the Royal Mint building, London. Photo: London News Pictures
“We want an end to homelessness – we want these buildings to be used. Ordinary Londoners are now being priced out of London. Even people on good wages are unable to buy.
“We want everyone to have a home and we want to raise awareness.
“There are hundreds of thousands of homeless people and massive empty buildings like this could home 500 or 1000 people.
Support our revolutionaries. Squatters occupy Royal Mint site to protest against homelessness https://t.co/KLxRM62PvF
— Paul Andrews (@Revoche) December 29, 2015
“Manchester and Bristol Councils have already opened up some of their empty buildings.”
Royal Mint Court has five buildings spread across five acres including Burgess House which the squatters entered.
The Johnson Smirke building is no longer used by the Royal Mint following its re-location to Lombard Street in January 2000. However, it has been earmarked for redevelopment as a business complex.
It has been revealed that there are also concerns about how safe the building currently is to live in.
Estate agents CBRE delivered a letter to the squatters to warn them the quality of the water available had not been tested for some time and that there was also the risk of the building having traces of asbestos.