CAMPAIGNERS fighting plans for a hotel and golf course on a country estate will launch a new legal challenge – but the council has vowed to defend its position.
Lawyers representing the Surrey branch of the Campaign to Protect Rural England (CPRE) have written to Mole Valley District Council, announcing their intention to apply for a judicial review of the decision to permit the development at Cherkley Court, near Leatherhead.
On Friday, the council confirmed it had responded to the letter and will stand by its decision.
A spokesman told the Advertiser: "It [the letter] cites a number of grounds where it claims the council was at fault in the way it considered the application, and seeks for the application to be quashed.
"The council has carefully considered the letter and is robustly refuting the grounds cited in it.
"The council has taken external legal advice in drafting its response and awaits to hear from the CPRE."
A judicial review is the final chance to overturn a planning decision, and those applying for it must prove proper procedure was not followed in the planning process.
CPRE Surrey refused to comment when contacted by the Advertiser, because its board is due to meet soon to discuss what its next steps could be.
But John Hoad, the CPRE's national head of planning, said the charity's head office is backing the local branch.
He added: "It's a big step and you've got to raise a lot of money and you put your reputation at risk in the process."
Mr Hoad claimed Longshot – the company behind the golf course plan – has tried to get the national CPRE to stop supporting the Surrey branch.
"They are putting quite a lot of pressure on the trustees," he said.
"They have written a letter saying they believe both the local branch and ourselves have been campaigning against this development to an unreasonable degree in relation to our charitable objectives, which is a strange reaction, as our charitable objectives are exactly that: campaigning to protect the countryside."
A Longshot spokesman said: "We welcome MVDC's decision to defend their resolution to grant our planning application.
"We have taken our own legal advice and believe the council have no case to answer.
"We see this simply as a last attempt by the few self-interested people who do not care about the public funds they will be wasting."
