Landowner loses legal battle over green space

A LONG-RUNNING battle to preserve an area of green space has been resolved in the Court of Appeal.

The Open Spaces Society, the leading pressure-group for green spaces, says it is delighted that the case for registering Yeadon Banks as a town green has prevailed in a legal skirmish which has lasted several years.

The five-acre Yeadon Banks is a much-loved open space on the outskirts of Leeds.

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Now the Appeal Court has rejected the arguments on behalf of the landowner, Leeds Group plc.

The general secretary of the Open Spaces Society, Kate Ashbrook, said: “We are highly relieved that this appeal has been dismissed.

“We felt so strongly that Yeadon Banks should be registered that we gave a donation towards the cost of the appeal. We have supported the applicant, Doug Jones of Keep Yeadon Banks Green, throughout the process.

“This is a special area of green space and we trust that it will now be secure.”

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Members of Keep Yeadon Banks Green registered the 12-acre site as a green in 2004 to help save it from development.

But Leeds Group plc claimed that the regime for establishing town and village greens, which was introduced in 2000, was a breach of the Human Rights Act. However, judges decided that there was no breach of the human rights convention.

During the legal battle, campaigners agreed to continue their fight to have Yeadon Banks registered as a village green and enlisted the support of the Liberal Democrat MP for Leeds North West Greg Mulholland.

He was adamant that residents were right to protect their village green and said he would continue to support them to protect the land from development.

Lawyers for the Government and Leeds Council argued that the law is clear and unambiguous and that the appeal should be dismissed.

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