CIVIC leaders in Winchester say the government's new guidelines on finding gypsy and traveller sites in the

district will cause areas of outstanding natural beauty to be turned into campsites.

Their warning came as members of Winchester City Council's ruling cabinet met to discuss new directives from Deputy Prime minister John Prescott's office requiring councils to do more to help gypsy and traveller communities.

The government says the new guidelines have been drawn up to ensure there is adequate site provision across the country for gypsy and traveller communities, in a bid to stem the number of illegal sites that are set up every year.

However, the new guidelines have also attracted strong criticism be-cause they suggest current illegal sites where the group owns the land but does not have permission to live on it, should in some cases be converted into legal sites.

They also suggest authorities should do more to give gypsy and traveller communities access to health and educational facilities.

Community leaders in Winchester have expressed their worries about the policy changes and will be writing to Mr Prescott's office to make their concerns known.

Cllr John Beveridge, member for St Michael's ward in Winchester, said: "It is quite clear that the tenor of this document is that we may have to consider areas of outstanding natural beauty and indeed local and

district gaps as possible sites. All that is going to cause for us an awful lot of angst."

Council leader Sheila Campbell said another concern was the affect on local residents who may have paid 'top dollar' for a house, only to find travellers have paid agricultural rates for a field next door.

WHAT WINCHESTER CIVIC LEADERS SAY...

The requirement for local planning authorities to allocate sites for gypsies and travellers is 'an inflexible and cumbersome method of dealing with the issue of meeting these specific needs'.

Hampshire County Council should be involved in the search for sites, as the requirements go beyond the district boundaries and HCC have more expertise and knowledge in dealing with the issue.

Greater enforcement powers should be given to local authorities to deal with unauthorised sites.

The government's request to involve gypsy and travellers more fully in decision making is unrealistic given these groups' traditional mistrust of local authorities.

Winchester City Council is concerned that the guidelines over sites in rural and semi-rural areas and on city outskirts, are too vague and may encourage encampments on vulnerable urban fringe areas and even areas of outstanding natural beauty and other protected zones.