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Scottish landowner row over Adisham woods
croatiantimes.com
An ex banker to the Queen has urged a public enquiry to close part of Chaucer's Pilgrims Way that runs over his estate by telling inspectors they should remember they are not in Zimbabwe, Cuba or Scotland.
Timothy Steel who is the former vice chairman of the Queen’s investment bankers Cazenove has become embroiled in a battle with villagers over the footpaths - and yesterday (TUE) handed a dossier of evidence to the inspectors - including the letter marked "TS6" which he wrote and sent to Adisham parish council.
In the letter he said villagers seemed to "view land ownership with a mixture of envy and contempt" and added that the attempts by locals to walk over private land "might have resonance in Zimbabwe, Cuba and possibly Scotland, but it is an anachronistic form of totalitarian thinking, which has been abandoned by most other former Communist regimes."
He then adds that while land ownership brings responsibilities it also brings rights - accused locals of a vendetta against him and then in conclusion wrote that he would "not be bullied into allowing the right to roam at all times" over either his land - or that of his brother-in-law Lord Hawarden.
The enquiry opened last month with evidence from villagers and restarted today (Tue) with testimony from another local walker - Sir Geoffrey Nice QC - who was the war crimes prosecutor in the trial of Slobodan Milosevic at the Hague.
Tomorrow Mr Steel will bring his witnesses and the enquiry is expected to close this week after being scheduled for three days of evidence to decide the future of the ancient paths across the woodlands in Kent near Adisham.
Professor John Fitzpatrick from the Canterbury Law Clinic said he was astonished when he read the contents - handed to the enquiry in Mr Steel's Statement of Case and marked as exhibit number 6 "TS6".
Villagers from Adisham had protested to Kent County Council (KCC) after three paths used by walkers and horse riders were closed off by Mr Steel, who put up padlocked metal gates and barbed wire and signs ordering them to keep out.
Retired businessman and protest organiser David Leidig, 73, said: "I used to walk my dogs there almost every day, then suddenly there were gamekeepers driving around on quad bikes chasing people away."
The villagers’ appeal, which included more than 100 testimonies from people who had used the paths going back to 1927, was accepted by KCC after an eight-year battle, and the council ordered the paths registered as public rights of way.
But despite the decision, the gates have remained in place and following an appeal by Mr Steel, the public enquiry was ordered.
Tag cloud inspectors enquiry council handed Zimbabwe Scotland appeal gates ownership Queen villagers walker wrote letter brings Steel Adisham Kent protested banker
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