Pontins apologises to Irish Travellers over discrimination

Pontins has apologised directly to Irish Travellers saying its previous refusal to allow guests to stay because it suspected they were from the community was “clearly wrong”.

The apology is the first stage in the holiday park company’s one-year action plan launched to tackle discrimination against Irish Travellers.

The plan was developed with the Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC), after the watchdog found Pontins had engaged in unlawful acts discriminating against Irish Travellers.

Earlier this year the EHRC published an investigation into Pontins having unearthed “company systems and practices” designed to bar Irish Travellers from its holiday parks between 2013 and 2018.

On Monday, EHRC chairwoman Baroness Kishwer Falkner said: “Race and ethnicity should never be a barrier to going on holiday.

“Pontins has today apologised to the Irish Traveller community it discriminated against and has begun work to introduce strict safeguards and guarantee a zero-tolerance approach to discrimination.”

The EHRC investigation found 11 unlawful acts which discriminated against Irish Travellers, including refusing or cancelling bookings made by people with Irish accents or surnames.

The commission also found Pontins had created a list of common Irish surnames labelled as “undesirable guests”.

Some of the names that appeared on the list of undesirable guests – an image of which the EHRC included in its report – were Boyle, Keefe, Gallagher, O’Donnell, McGuiness, Murphy, and O’Reilly.

As well as this list, the watchdog found there was a “banned list” containing the names of people thought to be Irish Travellers, as well as their associates.

The EHRC said Pontins also brought in rules requiring guests to appear on the electoral register, which the commission said was discriminatory against Gypsies and Travellers, as they were less likely to be on it.

The action plan, the implementation of which will be monitored by the watchdog, will introduce a “zero-tolerance approach to discrimination”.

The requirement to be on the electoral roll has been dropped and a commitment made not to reintroduce it.

Booking policies will also be monitored, a whistleblower plan introduced, and there will be engagement with Traveller communities.

A spokesperson for Pontins said the company would like to “reiterate our apologies regarding the serious issues” raised by the ECHR.

“We deeply regret any distress caused, particularly to members of the traveller and gypsy communities who have been directly affected,” the company added.

The statement said the firm was “fully committed to ensuring ongoing compliance with the Equality Act 2010, implementing a zero-tolerance approach to discrimination of all forms and to fostering an inclusive and welcoming environment for all of our guests”.

Pontins has previously said the call centre where the incidents took place had now closed.