Homeowner to seek legal advice over council “discrimination”
THE owner of the cottage caught up in the Bervie Braes landslide has said he is seeking legal advice after Aberdeenshire Council refused to extend stabilisation works to protect him.
Richard Barnes and his partner Noel McDonnell were evacuated from Invercarron Cottage in February after it was swamped by tons of mud and rock which had careered down the unstable cliffs above.
Mr Barnes has slammed the local authority for continuing to refuse the extension of a £3 million stabilisation programme to take in the hill above his home.
It was announced in March that the Scottish Government would provide £2 million towards the cost of the work, with Aberdeenshire Council providing another £1 million.
Mr Barnes has repeatedly asked the council to explain the grounds on which it was “discriminating” against him and has now said he will be seeking legal advice over the matter.
In a letter to the Kincardine and Mearns area manager Willie Munro, Mr Barnes wrote: “Various representatives of Aberdeenshire Council (including yourself) have made public pronouncements that this plan is for the residents of Stonehaven, yet you continue to blatantly discriminate against us by refusing to include Braes land behind our house in the plan.
“May I remind you that we are also residents of Stonehaven and council tax payers.
“I formally request a response from you regarding the legal rationale for this blatant discrimination.
“Surely in the light of recent catastrophic events, the responsible approach would be to revisit and re-evaluate your plan. If the response from the Council is unacceptable, in that they refuse to help residents of Stonehaven (when they have been funded by the Scottish Government to do so), I will be forced to seek legal redress in this matter of discrimination.”
Mr Barnes received a letter from Mr Munro reiterating his sympathy for the situation and outlining the reasons why the council is unable to intervene.
Mr Munro wrote: “The issues relating to the intervention at Bervie Braes, and at Pennan, relate to the number of houses involved, the complexity of achieving a solution, and the potential consequences.
“In effect the case for such intervention at Bervie Braes and Pennan can be made, while unfortunately a case for doing work to protect one house can not. “Whilst we sympathise with your particular situation, there are a number of other properties across Aberdeenshire that have either landslip or flooding issues. It is the Council’s view that these are very much matters for the land owners, or their insurers, to address.”
Mr Barnes has said he is not satisfied with this answer and will take the matter further.
Stonehaven and District Community Council has written to Aberdeenshire Council supporting Mr Barnes’ request that his home be included in the Bervie Braes remedial work.
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Thursday 24 May 2012
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