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No, Travellers didn’t “put a stop” to the Bushey data centre

11/11/2026

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Newspaper
Daily Mail
✕ Press claim

Travellers “put a stop” to a planned AI data centre in Bushey, which is “on hold” over their discrimination claim.

✓ The truth

Councillors deferred the scheme over water supply, design and developer contributions. It has not been stopped: the application is still live.

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Fight back: Daily Mail claimed Travellers “put a stop” to a planned AI data centre in Bushey, which is “on hold” over their discrimination claim. The truth: Councillors deferred the scheme over water supply, design and developer contributions. It has not been stopped: the application is still live.

On 11 November 2026, the Daily Mail published a story headlined “Travellers put a stop to AI data centre”, saying plans for a 130ft-high site in Bushey were on hold over claims they would “indirectly discriminate” against a Traveller group living next door.

The headline pins the blame for halting a £2.5bn scheme on a small and often stigmatised minority. More than 1,000 people objected to the plans, and the Mail’s own article says councillors gave other reasons.

Councillors did not stop the data centre. On 5 November, Hertsmere’s planning committee voted to defer it, citing the buildings’ visual impact, Affinity Water not yet confirming it could meet demand, and a lack of financial contributions from the developer, Ark Data Centres. Officers had recommended approval, and the deferral leaves the application live.

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