Squatters want to stay in a ‘land banked’ building until a supermarket giant decides what to do with it.

Three groups of people are living in flats at Circus Parade, Brighton, near Preston Circus, part of a run-down complex once earmarked for redevelopment by Tesco.

The supermarket is taking them to court this morning to repossess the flats.

Squatting has hit the headlines recently after a legal change championed by Hove’s Conservative MP Mike Weatherley to make squatting in residential properties a criminal offence.

Squatters marched through Brighton on Saturday in opposition to the new law.

Brighton and Hove City Council’s leader, Councillor Bill Randall, said earlier this year that he would not rule out allowing a form of tolerated squatting in empty council properties, this followed suggestions from the campaign group Squatters Network of Brighton.

Property The council is currently understood to be considering whether that sort of scheme would be possible and what it would involve.

Councillor Liz Wakefield, cabinet member for housing in the controlling Green administration, said yesterday: “We are looking at the possibility of granting short-term licences on council-owned empty property.

“But we are not yet in a position to consider any specific proposals.”

Tesco acquired Circus Parade as part of proposals to redesign the area around a superstore.

The firm met opposition from people living in the area and dropped the plans in 2009 but continues to own the properties.

Tesco declined to comment on whether it would consider a short-term tenancy or tolerated squatting, saying only that there were no plans for a supermarket and the company would consider selling the sites.

A spokesman said: ‘Our property agents are seeking a court order to remove the squatters.

“We are considering our options for the future of the site.’ One squatter, who gave his name as Graham, is staying in one of the squatted flats with his partner.

He said: “I moved down with my partner at the beginning of the year.

“I came down here with the money for a deposit. We were refused because we’d be paying with housing benefit.”

He said they were living a “clean and respectful” life in the flat and would be asking for permission to stay.

He said: “Tesco have owned this for however many years. They are just boarding them up.

“We’d want an agreement between us and Tesco. We are not causing any trouble to anybody.

“We’ll be seeking consent to live there until they want to do something.

“We’ve been doing the place a favour. A lot of squatters will go into a building and trash the place and move out.”

He said he would be opposing the court order this morning.