A Kent-based Irish Traveller is to stage a protest at one of the world's largest festivals over a new anti-trespass law he claims will "criminalise the Traveller way of life".

Various Gypsy, Roma and Traveller (GRT) communities have expressed fears over the impact of the Police, Crime, Sentencing And Courts Act 2022 on nomadic traditions.

Home Secretary Priti Patel's flagship legislation has been labelled "draconian" by some human rights groups.

Under the Act, thousands of people from Traveller communities living in Kent could face eviction for stopping overnight on roadsides and unauthorised land if they are deemed to have caused "significant harm, disruption or distress".

Police will be handed more powers to fine offenders up to £2,500 with jail terms of three months for non-compliance.

It comes despite complaints of a national shortage of sites amid a declining number of new ones being opened by local authorities and a rise in Traveller caravans.

But the Home Office denies the law, set to come into force later this month, will "criminalise the Traveller way of life".

The government says the new legislation, which is being brought in to tackle community concerns about unauthorised encampments, respects the vast majority of Gypsies who it says are law abiding.

However, Martin Ward, from Northfleet, disagrees and believes the Act is a worrying first step towards removing a persecuted minority.

The 30-year-old Irish Traveller has appeared on reality TV shows discussing the community and uses social media to call for better representation of Traveller voices on screen and in the media.

Later this month Martin will join other members of the GRT community at a planned protest over the new law at Glastonbury Festival, between Wednesday June 22 and 26.

Martin said: "It is a hard one to swallow. I never thought it would be a law come in.

"We are not doing anything wrong we are just being who we are. This is pure entrapment they are chasing us off all the land in Kent."

Despite government claims the new law will only target "unauthorised camps" Martin holds serious reservations over its scope.

He fears its effect will go beyond unauthorised camps and could see Travellers constantly moved on, to the detriment of their health and the education of their children.

"My family is ringing me all the time crying saying what are we to do if we have nowhere to go," he said.

"I think it needs to stop and it needs to be turned back over quicker than it was laid out."

Martin now splits his time between permanent accommodation in Kent and his family roots in Manchester and Ireland.

He has previously opened up on his own struggles living as an openly gay Traveller and how growing up he felt at odds with his own community.

'I wish I could stand in front of Priti Patel and give her a piece of my mind...'

The YouTube and TikTok performer says many Traveller families, including his own, will struggle to adjust if turfed out of transit.

"The one thing that upsets me is we only started coming into houses two years ago so it is new to us," he explained.

"We have stopped travelling but that does not mean we are going to to travel again. We are inside now but come summer we will be travelling."

Martin also disputes claims Travellers are responsively for much of the widespread vandalism and littering in country parks and believes suggestions are often widely exaggerated.

He claims in the isolated incidents when this does occur it is often down to a breakdown in communication or a lack of provision from the relevant authorities.

"We are up against a lot of racism. I got racially attacked in Wrotham a few years ago," he added.

Martin says there is lack of transit sites for Travellers to go to and that councils up and down the county lack both the funding and political will to deliver them.

"We need a Prime Minister that treats us as human beings," he said. "This is our country, this is our home. I'm an English citizen.

"They are trying to force us into houses which we can't live in, it will feel like prison."

He added: "We are not changing for anyone. I wish I could stand in front of Priti Patel and give her a piece of my mind."

The Home office says enforcement of the measures will come into place on June 28.

The changes are being brought in as part of a Conservative Party manifesto pledge to tackle unauthorised encampments and follows two rounds of public consultation.

'The majority of Travellers are law-abiding and we respect their right to follow a nomadic way of life...'

According to the Home Office, two-thirds of people responding on behalf of local authorities to the consultation were in favour of a new criminal offence.

And around 94% supported one or more of the proposed amendments to extend the powers the police have to direct trespassers to leave land.

In recent months there has been numerous sightings and court action taken against unauthorised pitches in both Dartford and Medway.

Earlier this week around 15 caravans returned to Beechings Way recreation ground in Gillingham having been removed three months prior.

A Home Office spokesman said: “The majority of Travellers are law-abiding and we respect their right to follow a nomadic way of life.

"No one should have unchecked rights to trespass on other people’s land without their permission and cause harm and boundless misery to local communities without consequence.

“As is the theme with many of the measures in this Act, this new offence for unauthorised encampments is about giving the police the right powers and flexibility to protect the law-abiding majority from disruption and harm.”

The Home Office says site provisions was a separate matter to enforcement and it believes local authorities are best placed to make decisions about the number and location of such sites.

Under the Housing Act 1985, local housing authorities are required to assess everyone's housing and accommodation needs, including those living in caravans.

Last July, there was space for only one caravan at local authority and privately-owned sites in Swale, according to the government's latest traveller caravan count.

The latest data shows there were 3,545 traveller caravans in the county then – up from 1,899 in July 2019, when the last summer count took place. Of those counted, 341 were on unauthorised pitches.