More power must be given to homeowners “menaced” by squatters to tackle the problem, MPs have said.

A debate on how to deal with attacks and disturbance by squatters has been in held in Westminster. During the Westminster Hall debate Hove MP Mike Weatherley insisted it was the job of people to change their behaviour to limit the spread of the squatters. He said: “In Brighton and Hove we like squatters – our football club has even adorned its new stadium with squatter images. "However, in numbers they can cause distress and mess.”

Tory MP Peter Aldous, who arranged the debate, suggested the Government should consider changing licensing controls so residents could take action against squatters if they were causing a problem. He said their “piercing call” was a nightmare for residents, and described them as being “indiscriminate defecators, with the ability to expel significant quantities of runny faeces on the wing”.

Defra Minister Jim Paice said a range of options were already open to councils, including lethal control and disrupting eggs and nests. But he added: “Food supply is the single most important factor. If it can be denied them, they will go elsewhere.”

Anger at squatter attacks have led to brutal retaliation against the squatters in the past. Last year the National Squatter Rescue and Protection (NSRP) campaign offered £5,000 reward to catch the gunman believed to be behind the shooting of up to 50 squatters between Brighton and Eastbourne.

In July this year residents in Saltdean reported what appeared to be a gruesome ritual in which squatters were beheaded and laid out on the beach.
Shooting a squatter is a criminal offence which carries a maximum sentence of six months in jail or a £20,000 fine.