[15] Romani people are also thought to have existed in small numbers in Ireland for centuries due to historical migrations of Kale and Romanichal.

[19] Marime (or Mochadi) is a belief traditionally encompassed within Romanipen which, although not a religion, refers to the Romani concept of ritual impurity, relating to topics such as hygiene and human sexuality.

[25][26] In 2007, a study by the Equality and Human Rights Commission found that widespread prejudice against "Gypsy Traveller" communities persists in Wales.

[28] In 2012, an Amnesty International report stated that "Gypsy Traveller" groups in Scotland routinely suffer widespread discrimination in society,[29] as well as a disproportionate level of scrutiny in the media.

[35] The Egyptians Act 1530 banned Romani people from entering England, requiring those already living there to leave within sixteen days under the threat of confiscation of property, imprisonment, and deportation.

The Egyptian Act 1554 amended this law, removing the threat of punishment on the condition that Romani people abandon their "naughty, idle, and ungodly life and company" and adopt a settled, sedentary lifestyle.

[36][37] The Inclosure Act 1857 created the offence of injury or damage to village greens and interruption to its use or enjoyment as a place of exercise and recreation.

It also enables a district council to make an order prohibiting the stationing of caravans on common land, or a town or village green.

This law, which absorbs the European Convention on Human Rights into UK primary legislation, is seen by some to permit the granting of retrospective planning permission.

Severe population pressures and the paucity of greenfield sites have led to "travellers" purchasing land and setting up residential settlements very quickly, thus subverting the planning restrictions.