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Manchester standoff ends ? for now, at least
A five day standoff between disabled activists and council chiefs in Manchester has ended ? with campaigners vowing to resume action unless accessible housing conditions in the city improve. Around thirty members of the Disabled Persons Direct Action Network (DAN), moved into a council housing office in West Burnage last Thursday. They told council chiefs that they would ?stay as long as necessary?, and would only leave if a meeting was arranged with the Director of Housing. The action was called by Claire Lewis, a local wheelchair user, who claims she and her daughter have waited five years to be moved from their near inaccessible first floor flat. Lawyers from the council sought a court order earlier in the week which would allow them to forcibly remove the campaigners. But the action ended when Steve Rumbelow, the council?s director of housing, agreed to talk to Ms Lewis. Mr Rumbelow said that the meeting had been ?reasonably constructive? and that the two had ?agreed a way forward on her re-housing". Action organiser Tom Comberford said that the five day ?house-warming party?, although exhausting, had been worthwhile. But he warned that if the council failed to act on its words, similar demonstrations would be forthcoming. He said: "We have issued an ultimatum that if Clair has not received a set of keys within 30 days, [we] will be back." Patrick Greaney & David Felton 23 Jan, 2002
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