 |
 |
In case you haven't heard, Dai Morris and the other people of Holtsfield (Swansea) have been successful in disputing the landownder's claim that their chalet/homes should be classed as "heavy garden ornaments" which could therefore be demolished by the landowner. (see Keith Halfacree's c-g-f posting a while ago). The Law Lords, bless them, recognised this for the utter rubbish that it is. The landowner - Elitestone (owned by Mr Tim Jones, solicitor) - now owns the land AND the chalets. The residents seem to be safe, albeit at the cost of being tenants of a somewhat aggressive landlord. I find it depressing that we have a property rights institution that could allow someone to buy a plot of land that has been peacefully liven on since the 1930s with the deliberate intention of clearing the people off the land and 'developing' it. Plenty of historical precedents, of course: the Highland clearances, MOD training ground acquisition in war time, state-supported reservoir construction in Wales, etc. Anyway, the legal system has eventually provided protection for the residents, but I suspect that they will have to be continually vigilant. Anyway, that's got something off my chest. ps. Maybe our new "ethical" government might reflect on the broader property rights issues. Christopher Ray %%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%