Planning row - Taunton bungalow demolished today

[Gerrard Winstanley]

Planning row bungalow demolished
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/bristol/7747151.stm

A bungalow in Somerset which has been at the centre of a planning
dispute for 15 years has been demolished.

Anonymous faceless zombies from Sedgemoor District Council sent in
contractors to knock down the property, in Shearston near Taunton,
because of planning irregularities.

Richard and Linda Gosbee received an eviction notice earlier this month.

Their possessions were taken from the bungalow and are being held in
store. The Gosbees said they were being victimised by the council.

Second home

Despite a High Court ruling supporting Sedgemoor District Council, the
couple refused to move.

They now face a £40,000 bill.

Mr and Mrs Gosbee won planning consent for a new home on their land in
1992.

They were required to knock down their old property, but instead they
sold the land with planning permission and stayed in the bungalow.

Another home was built on the land they once owned.

As the bailiffs arrived earlier this month, Mrs Gosbee said: "We had
planning permission for two dwellings on the land - I reiterate that.
We have done nothing wrong."

Bob Brown, of Sedgemoor District Council, said: "There are all those
thousands of people who comply with the planning regulations and it
would be unfair on them, I think, if we failed to enforce planning
regulations properly and allowed Mr and Mrs Gosbee to get away with it."

The Gosbees face a bill for £40,000 from the council