SCOTLAND’S travelling community will likely face continued hostility unless there is “co-ordinated and coherent” action to provide it with proper sites, a human rights watchdog warned yesterday.

Research carried out by the University of Salford for the Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) Scotland identified funding as a “significant barrier” for councils, which have the responsibility for developing sites.

“Over the last year we have seen once again tension in some parts of Scotland concerning the development of temporary or permanent sites for Gypsy Travellers, either in private or public ownership,” said EHRC Scotland director Alastair Pringle.