Three ‘slum boats’ reportedly moored in Teddington Lock last night, but were swiftly removed by authorities.

The boats are currently being removed by the Environment Agency (EA), which is responsible for the river and its banks.

The owners of the boats have failed to “comply with the terms of a previous order” served by High Court bailiffs, an EA spokesman said.

He said: “They will be towing the barges away somewhere else on the river to make them secure to collect at a later date.”

One bystander said the EA has three tugboats in the lock, and is preparing to tow the boats upstream.

He said they had initially moved in over the weekend, and had been moored in the laybay of the lock last night.

Have you seen the boats? Email your pictures to ben.weich@london.newsquest.co.uk