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Pensioner told to let his home fall into sea

Tue Nov 18 02:25PM

A pensioner has launched a High Court legal battle against a government-funded organisation after he was told that he must not prevent his cliffside home from falling into the sea.

Peter Boggis, a retired engineer, built his own coastal defences to prevent erosion that was threatening his home as well as neighbouring properties.

But Natural England wants the fossil-bearing cliffs on which the houses stand to wear away, exposing soil and rock that they want to study.

In 2006 it declared that the area was a Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) and Mr Boggis was banned from maintaining his ‘soft sea defences'.

The 77-year-old is currently arguing at London's High Court that Natural England has acted beyond its powers and has no legal right to prevent him from defending his home.

The case, which is believed to have cost around £50,000 to bring to court, is "extremely critical for all people living along the coast" as they might also be prevented from protecting their homes, according to Mr Boggis.

Gregory Jones, Mr Boggis' lawyer, told Mr Justice Blair - the brother of the former Prime Minister - that the purpose of SSSIs was to conserve or preserve geological features, not to study the results of cliff destruction.

Natural England argues that it had a legitimate scientific interest in allowing the sea to erode the cliffs.

Comments51 - 60 of 509

Maybe we should now remove the Thames barrier and see how Justice Blaire likes it when he has to go work in a boat!

From colinhoggett on Tue Nov 18 04:24PM
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I am sorry no sympathy, i was horrified to find that people bought these houses or that they were even built so close to cliff edge does no-one remember Holbeck falling into the sea in June 1993 not that far away from where these houses were built ??

From moominhelen on Tue Nov 18 04:25PM
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Ridiculous. The study of nature is now more important than some poor old blokes home. Welcome to a nation that is run by pot-smoking Communist privately educated idiots from the 80's!

From jamieellis1966 on Tue Nov 18 04:25PM
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Yeah, but the fossils...don't we want to see the fossils?
Only joking...the poor bloke needs to defend his home.

From noonan@ymail.com on Tue Nov 18 04:25PM
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Actually they are doing him a favour. No matter what he does, the cliffs will collapse, so he should save his money and buy somewhere else.

From dusty_r_kives on Tue Nov 18 04:25PM
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everyone has the right or should have the right to protect their property,if his property does go down then i think that the people that are preventing him from saving his house should buy him a new home.
i feel sorry for him.

From sexysandy30041979 on Tue Nov 18 04:26PM
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I cannot believe what I have just read. What century are we living in, can someone please remind me !!

From elainemcleod2460 on Tue Nov 18 04:26PM
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the governments and councils are corrupted, and they are hard to fight, i wish him every success in his battle, should also think about making claim for stress this is causing too!... if he loses hope the governement are prepared to give him a massive payout as well as a new luxury pad to compensate...natural Britain..i never herd so much @#$% in my life!!

From malissa_gameel on Tue Nov 18 04:26PM
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This is what is called plain maddness. If they want to see the cliffs erode, they should buy the house and buy this poor old man another. It's not fair on him to lose his home because some bunch of stuffy 'scienists' want to watch a cliff break up, which is in my opinion less interesting than watching paint dry.

From libbykeir on Tue Nov 18 04:26PM
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never heard anything so ridiculous, let your home fall into the sea so we can study the ground?? nae bother! start a campaign

From lilmisslonglegs21 on Tue Nov 18 04:26PM
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