UK man's castle won't be his home, court says

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/eu_britain_secret_castleJust one question, especially to Brits here like loony, why is it illegal for the man to own that house? What law did he break?I'm sorry if i dont get it cause i dont live there and dont know their laws.Here is what i get:
He is a farmer, its his land and built a house that looked like a castle. The local authorities sued him because its "against zoning law or something".... the farmer's appeal has been denied and ordered to demolish his house within a year....

Replying to #1

in order to build anything in Britain, you need permission from the local council. the fact that it's in the countryside only makes the matter worse as it would probably be in a 'green belt'. he wasnt sued either... suing is for americans.

Pardon for the word "sued". So even if i even have acres of land in my possession, the local council can prevent me from building my own home?I thought it was harder to build a house in the city instead of the countryside.... the city is already full of houses, so the country side should be lenient in its zoning laws.Also, what is a green belt? agricultural zone perhaps?

green belt is land protected against development. Sort of like a national park but not as strict.basically yes, if you own land, you need to get permission to build on it, its called planning permission. Some small things may not need permission (I don't think my dad had to get permission for the greenhouse or car port) but a major development such as a house does need permission. Basically you go to the council with your blueprints, they inspect your proposed site and the blueprints and give a judgement. Sometimes the yes answer can be dependent on your making alterations to your blueprints or some other concessions.

Wow, so wierd. You have no rights in your lands...
what a shame for the house, its cool and if its his land then he has the right to build what he wants in it, unless its against the law...well, in your case, its against the law to build something on your property without the consent of the local council...hmmm...maybe next in the news, Hear ye, hear ye, the Queen orders that all lands within the terriotry of the UK and the Commonwealth of Nations is hereby declared the property of the monarch and will do what he/she pleases with them. lol

wow, suddenly i dont feel like wanted to buy my own land anymore..... i mean whats the point to own a land if you cant do anything on it without other people's permission. its like buying a cake but you cant have a slice of it.

damanali · #5Wow, so wierd. You have no rights in your lands...
what a shame for the house, its cool and if its his land then he has the right to build what he wants in it, unless its against the law...well, in your case, its against the law to build something on your property without the consent of the local council...hmmm...maybe next in the news, Hear ye, hear ye, the Queen orders that all lands within the terriotry of the UK and the Commonwealth of Nations is hereby declared the property of the monarch and will do what he/she pleases with them. lol

It's been like that for ages, and it's the same where I live. You need to get resource consent from the council to build structures of a certain size or above. It's how many countries work, and there will be none of this monarch-land-stealing bullshit.

If the queen said that she would be laughed all the way out of the country. The king and queen are figureheads, nothing more.I also agree with planning permission, it stops twats building a massive horrible wall in a garden so the neighbours have to lose property value because of some ugly piece of crap someone else built minus planning.He deserves to lose it, as he broke the law.

I don't see why you are so surprised. In the US you have to have local permissions to build any structure, even adding a deck to your house technically needs permission and without it you can be fined. Many communities have ever stricter rules regarding what you can and cannot do with your land. Even as far as what colors you are allowed to use and what types of lawn ornaments are allowed.Building permits ensure that you adhere to national and local building codes. They also require things like inspectors to sign off at various stages of the build depending on what is being built.

Sometimes we can get away with add-on's in australia...like a deck as trithRR said.But despite needing permits, here in australia, they get preety dumb, 3/4 stores houses that look right into people's backyards behind them that are single story, thus leading to court cases to over turn these...Who ever gives them out here really need to double check details.