Council workers have started to clear away tents at a traveller site in plush central London, which sits opposite the £1,000-a-night Park Lane Hilton hotel.
The patch of grassland at the heart of the capital, where the average property price is around £12million, has been frequented by tents for more than a decade.
Evictions have repeatedly taken place – but each time new encampments have spawned just days after the last one was quashed.
Previously, homeless people who have taken up residence between the dual carriageways have been known to cause trouble with pickpocketing and anti-social behaviour.
But as they are moved on today, pictures show huge mattresses and enormous shelters constructed out of tarpaulin being carried out by mask-wearing council officers.
Residents of the ‘tent city’ attempt to load their possessions into shopping trolleys as they are made to leave while it is still dark – dragging their livelihoods behind them in bulging shopping bags and suitcases.
Residents of the ‘tent city’ are pictured attempting to load their possessions into shopping trolleys as they are made to leave
National Eviction Team officers wander through the site as the tent-dwellers are moved on from their central London homes
Pictures show huge mattresses and enormous shelters constructed out of tarpaulin being carried out by mask-wearing council officers
Four officers combine to carry a tent away from the site as they get rid of the encampment
Residents leave the site with their possessions packed in bulging bags and suitcases
The tents are erected opposite the the £1,000-a-night Park Lane Hilton Hotel, pictured in the background with a tent in the foreground
Onlooker Paul Brown said that the council were cleaning up the space, which he claims held as many as 20 tents and 40 people.
He said: ‘Tents are being removed here on Park Lane. They have the eviction; the council are cleaning up everything.
‘Probably 20 tents there in total going. Probably a community of 30, 40 people.
National Eviction Team officers can be seen in video footage of the site, watching on as council workers in high vis gather crates and materials.
A sea of ragged tents are dragged off, while the few remaining shelters look battered by last week’s storms.
In the background, they throw the detritus into a bin lorry, which has been parked on the edge of the grass.
This afternoon little remained of the encampment, with the exception of a few pieces of litter. A bottle of nitrous oxide – also known as ‘hippy crack’ was found under a tree, while empty cans, bags and food packaging was strewn among the grass.
On social media, Westminster Conservative councilors said that the clearance was ‘good news’ – but more still needs to be done for the capital.
They said: ‘Good news that this is finally happening. Thank you to everyone who signed our petition and helped put pressure on Labour-run Westminster City Council to act.
Council officer drag a battered tent into a lorry as they dispose of the site’s detritus
Onlooker Paul Brown said that the council were cleaning up the space, which he claims held as many as 20 tents and 40 people
Evictions have repeatedly taken place at the site – but each time new encampments have spawned just days after the last was quashed
National Eviction Team officers can be seen in video footage of the site, watching on as council workers in high vis gather crates and materials.
Beaming a smile, one bearded man was photographed filling a glass with vodka earlier this year before dragging on a cigarette – with a large music speaker seen next to them
Park Lane is one of London’s most exclusive streets with millionaires living in pent houses overlooking the homeless camp. Pictured: Earlier this year
‘But we need all three sites to be cleared so let’s see what happens today and be prepared to keep pushing.’
The petition, set up by the local Conservative organisation to battle ‘tent cities’, calls for the authority ‘to tackle the growing problem of tent encampments across Westminster’.
They add: ‘Swift action alongside suitable support for the homeless is needed now.’
Opposite their home are the luxury Park Lane Hilton and The Dorchester hotels where room rates can start from more than £1,000 a night.
Top of the range cars such as Mclarens, Bentleys and Ferraris line the streets nearby and an Aston Martin showroom has pride of place next to the five star Grosvenor House Hotel.
It comes as the winter weather bears down on Britain, following a week where the first named storm of the season battered the country with severe gales and rain.
The camp is at the centre of London’s West End tourist Mecca, just a stone’s throw away from Hyde Park, Marble Arch, Speaker’s Corner and Oxford Street.
Tycoons who look out on the camp from their penthouses are infuriated to see people drinking at 7am and using Hyde Park’s shrubberies as toilets.
Rough sleepers pictured earlier this year at a table in the middle of their ‘tent city’ which is close to London’s tourist hotspot
The camp is just a stone’s throw away from Hyde Park, Marble Arch, Speaker’s Corner and Oxford Street. Pictured: Earlier this year
Wealthy residents in Mayfair have complained about their presence having seen some of them drinking vodka at 7am. Pictured: In August
One resident, whose neighbours include former Prime Minister Tony Blair and former Phones 4U chief John Caudwell previously told MailOnline: ‘What must tourists think when they see this?
‘They get onto their open top buses to see Buckingham Palace, Big Ben and all that. And then they come to Park Lane and see this – what must they think?’
He went on: How are they allowed to just live here? It’s disgraceful. They have been here for months, and the council does nothing.
‘Do you know how much I pay in council tax? And what does Westminster Council do?
‘It’s outrageous that they have been allowed to pitch here in the first place – but the weeks go by and yet they are still here.’
And one person from the migrant camp said in August: ‘I came by plane. I haven’t found a job yet but I will keep trying. We have all left our children at home.
‘We don’t have any food and we don’t have any money. We just stay here until we can find something.’
He said most of them had got into the UK on temporary visas and were in the country looking for work to send money back to their families.
Up to 100 migrants from eastern Europe had pitched up and are living in temporary shelters off Park Lane. Pictured: In July
Their ‘tent city’ was pitched up outside the exclusive Park Lane in London’s Mayfair area. Pictured: Earlier this year
Authorities including TfL and Westminster Council have now carried out moves to evict the homeless camp from the site. Pictured: Earlier this year
A TfL spokesperson said: ‘No one should be faced with sleeping rough on London’s streets.
‘Park Lane is a busy part of the road network that is not a safe place for people to sleep rough and our focus is on the safety and welfare of everyone involved.
‘We applied for a possession order on 21 August and wanted to allow sufficient time for outreach support to take place and to encourage rough sleepers to accept offers of support available to them.
‘While a number of people have since accepted offers of support or have moved from the location, a large encampment remained – so we have taken the decision to take action to gain possession of the site.
‘Enforcement has always been our last resort and we are working closely with our partner agencies to ensure the safety and welfare of everyone involved.’
A Westminster City Council spokesperson added: ‘The reasons people live on the street are complex and include family breakdown, evictions, affordability.
‘Some people, who may be traumatised, present to services with a range of needs. Whatever the causes, underpasses and central reservations are not safe places to camp and the welfare of people staying there is a significant concern.
‘Following TfL’s clearance of the encampment on Park Lane the council is removing and storing any possessions left on site. This is being done respectfully and any items found will be stored securely for four weeks, allowing for people to reclaim their belongings.
‘The safety and welfare of those sleeping rough continues to be a priority for the council and we will continue to work with outreach services to help people get the advice and support they need to move on.’
