Anti-HS2 protesters who set up a resistance camp in Wendover say they are being evicted this morning.

The Wendover Active Resistance (WAR) camp saw around 100 bailiffs, security staff and a tunnelling team arrive at around 6am on Sunday morning.

Protesters have created tunnels, tree houses, a cage and a 15-metre high tower at the camp, which they have been occupying since January 2020 by the A413.

Dan Hooper, also known as Swampy, 57, is currently in a tunnel at the camp. He said: "Stop this madness. Stop HS2 now before it’s too late.

"The team has been preparing for this moment over the past two years, this is going to be a long eviction."

Swampy is one of the nine Euston tunnellers who last week were found not guilty on all counts in a victory for the STOP HS2 campaign after a 31-day eviction in February this year.

Another protester, named only as Satchel, 31, said: "I’m here because this is more than stopping a train line.

"It’s the only effective way I can protest the new draconian Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Bill with anti-trespass laws.

"This eviction should be a long one, as we aren’t planning on going anywhere soon.

"It could take them many weeks to remove us all."

Satchel and Swampy were part of the Jones Hill Wood occupation last year, which saw them evicted in October 2020.

An HS2 spokesperson said there has been at least 17 incidents of violent and threatening behaviour towards staff since the start of the year, including having rocks and other projectiles thrown at them.

They said: “This land is legally owned by HS2 Ltd and needed for the construction of the railway.

"The inhabitants of this camp have spent the past year subjecting our staff to a campaign of physical attacks and abuse which has led to a number of people being hospitalised. We are now working to clear the area so our staff can continue their work.

“The construction of HS2 is playing a vital role in Britain’s economic recovery from Covid-19, with over 20,000 people already working on the project and tens of thousands of additional jobs supported through our supply chain.

"We urge everyone who cares about our natural environment to support a project that is providing work across the UK today, and in the future will get people out of cars, off planes and onto low carbon rail travel.”