The multi-millionaire hedge funder trying to ban wild camping in Dartmoor has been confronted by activists outside the Supreme Court.
Alexander Darwall, who is notable for his donations to UKIP and the Leave Party, was challenged by campaigners after he was granted permission to bring a case that could restrict the right to wild camp in the national park.
Camping had been assumed to be allowed under the Dartmoor Commons Act since 1985, until a judge ruled otherwise last January. It was the only place in England that such an activity was allowed without requiring permission from a landowner.
A lengthy debate in the court of appeal had hinged on whether wild camping counted as open-air recreation, which Darwall’s lawyers had argued it was not due to the fact that it was only sleeping rather than enjoying a particular activity.
After the court of appeal decision, lawyers acting for Darwall, a hedge funder and Dartmoor’s sixth-largest landowner, asked the supreme court to hear the case, which could lead to the activity being banned.
Darwall bought the 1,619-hectare (4,000-acre) Blachford estate on southern Dartmoor in 2013. He offers pheasant shoots, deerstalking and holiday rentals on his land.
His attempts to ban wild campers from using his estate without his permission sparked a large protest movement, with thousands going to Dartmoor to assert their right to camp.
It awakened a land rights debate in the UK, with the Labour Party weighing in. The party previously said it would legislate for a right to wild camp in all national parks. However, it since appears to have U-turned on its land rights policy.
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