Dispersal Denial: BTP Wash Their Hands of GMP Traveller Operation

Author: James Robert-Warwick Stuart
Issued: 31 May 2025
Generated: 31/05/2025, 14:11 BST
Event Location: Manchester, Untied Kingdom

Overview

A Freedom of Information (FOI) response from British Transport Police (BTP) has revealed a devastating bombshell: The British Transport Police categorically deny any involvement in the controversial Traveller dispersal operation that took place on 23rd November 2024 during Manchester’s Christmas Markets. This directly contradicts Greater Manchester Police's own justification for enacting Section 34 dispersal powers that day — in which BTP were explicitly and directly cited as the source of key intelligence, alongside rail companies. 

This discrepancy not only calls into question the validity of the intelligence used to justify the dispersal of dozens of Romani Gypsy, Roma, and Traveller (GRT) youths — it now exposes potential institutional dishonesty.

The FOI Evidence

On 1st May 2025, a Freedom of Information request submitted to BTP (Ref: 01/FOI/25/335) asked for:

• Any logs or records showing BTP involvement in the dispersal event;

• Any communications with GMP or local authorities;

• Any guidance issued to BTP officers regarding Traveller youth;

• Confirmation of whether footage or safeguarding documentation exists.

 BTP's Response?

“Information not held. British Transport Police officers were not involved in the Greater Manchester Police operation referenced.”

This stands in direct contradiction to GMP’s own dispersal documentation, which states:

“Today, initially via train companies, then BTP, information has been recieved about multiple groups of Traveller youths coming to Manchester.”

The Fallout

This revelation throws the entire narrative of GMP’s dispersal into question:

• If BTP denies giving the intelligence and being involved in the operation entirely, who did give this intelligence?

• Did GMP misattribute sources to justify action?

• Were Traveller children dispersed, profiled, or separated based on unverified claims?

• Were these orders, which affect rights to assembly, freedom, and family life — even lawful?

The GRT Community at Risk

Traveller charities and legal advocacy groups have already raised the alarm. The Traveller Movement has already initiated contact with the Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC), citing racial profiling, excessive use of force, and the forced separation of minors during the incident, and the lack of reasonable intelligence.

This BTP denial now adds new weight to those concerns — and undermines the legitimacy of GMP's justification entirely.

Missing CCTV, Missing Accountability

Manchester City Council has also delayed disclosure of CCTV footage under FOI. That footage could confirm or disprove:

• Whether youths behaved disorderly,

• How officers engaged with minors,

• And whether the dispersal was pre-emptive or retaliatory.

The footage may be the only impartial witness left — and it's being stalled.

A Call for Inquiry

This development strengthens calls for:

• A full public inquiry into the use of dispersal powers against Traveller communities;

• A formal investigation into misstatements made in GMP’s documentation;

• The release of all safeguarding materials under the Children Acts and Human Rights obligations;

• And an urgent clarification from the Mayor of Greater Manchester.