Bulldozers on stand-by to demolish hidden castle
A council is standing by to demolish a mock-Tudor castle built behind a stack of hay bales if its owner fails to comply with enforcement notices.
Farmer Robert Fidler 66, built the four-bedroom home near Redhill, Surrey, without planning permission. He was told on Monday he would be jailed for his "defiance" if the property was not demolished by June. Reigate and Banstead Borough Council said it would send in the bulldozers if Mr Fidler did not knock down the house. Mr Fidler would have to repay the council's costs. "We don't have choice - ultimately we have to ensure that these notices are complied with," said planning committee chairman Mark Brunt. "On 6 June we expect the site to be clear and the building to be gone." Mr Fidler told the High Court he had sold the house at Honeycrock Farm in Salfords to an Indian businessman and that the injunction ordering demolition was invalid. The house was built on greenbelt land between 1999 and 2006. The council first ordered its demolition in 2007. Mr Fidler claimed the council wanted to destroy his life and that its case was based on lies and deception. The council said there was another house on the farm where Mr Fidler and his family used to live. "I urge him to come and continue to talk to the council and look at realistic options for providing accommodation for his family on the site," said Mr Brunt. Planning law expert Martin Goodall said Mr Fidler had reached the end of the road and would have to demolish the house. "There are very strong policies against building isolated houses in the greenbelt or open countryside and local authorities cannot allow it," he said.