Police evicting a camp of rough sleepers outside University College London Hospital

• YOUR report (Calls for police to stop joining council on homelessness outreach, November 30) about the inhumane “operational involvement” of Camden Council’s unit Routes Off the Streets (RTS) misses the point.

On the face of it the questions are why does the council employ contractors with staff who behave in this way and why do we elect councillors who did not prevent it?

For the council to claim that the RTS is “a vital part of the support we provide to people who are sleeping rough in Camden”, if this is an example of this support, beggars belief.

At the time of the inhumane act there was a weather forecast of severe cold. Last week the Mayor of London issued a “severe weather emergency protocol” which brings in special measures for those sleeping rough.

Presumably the sleeping bags of the 12 tenters, which provided them with a limited source of warmth at night, were destroyed along with their personal possessions by Veolia; presumably on the orders of the council.

Whatever the role of the police and University College London Hospitals, the council could have moved the 12 people to another site.

The only way forward for the council cabinet is to hold a thorough and independent investigation, with all evidence available to the public, to prevent anything like this happening again and, most importantly, adequate compensation for the victims.

The trouncing of the Labour Party at the Highgate by-election last Thursday may be the beginning of voters turning against a party which no longer seems to care for our most vulnerable residents.

There is a mountain to climb before rough sleepers can ever again trust Camden Council. Perhaps press reports are inaccurate, if so perhaps a councillor can put the record and me straight.

MICK FARRANT, NW5