'Pen-pushing' council bureaucrats hit back at Jeremy Clarkson for 'misleading' TV show
9 March 2023, 09:16 | Updated: 9 March 2023, 09:38
Local council planners have hit back at Jeremy Clarkson for using a "misleading" TV portrayal of the planning meeting where the application for a restaurant at his farm was refused.
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Mr Clarkson applied to open a restaurant at his Diddly Squat farm in Oxfordshire as part of his Clarkson's Farm TV show.
West Oxfordshire district council denied the application - with Mr Clarkson shown storming out of the meeting in anger.
Fans hit out at the council in response, labelling local planners "pen-pushers" on social media.
But now the council has hit back, saying that the show missed out "relevant legal planning advice" covered in the meeting and adding that the presenter, 62, did not have any preliminary discussions with planners that could have helped shape the application.
A West Oxfordshire council spokesperson said: 'The planning meeting shown in Clarkson's Farm ran for well over an hour but was covered in a matter of minutes in the show.
"This meant that a lot of discussion from the meeting was missed, including a lot of very relevant legal planning advice and discussion that informed the decision taken by councillors."
During the meeting, councillors discussed the need to preserve the rural area's "dark skies" - a theme that some viewers saw as absurd.
But the spokesperson added: "The 'dark skies' argument that featured in the programme was a very small part of the overall discussion and was not the reason for refusal of planning permission. Officers and councillors have to make some difficult decisions based on national planning related laws and guidance alongside local policies.
"Most applications have their pros and cons - as was obvious with the decisions for Diddly Squat Farm in Clarkson's Farm.
"Indeed, the council recognised the benefits in the proposal to local farmers and the economy, but the proposals did not meet other planning requirements and ultimately, having heard the whole case as opposed to edited highlights, the councillors voted to refuse planning permission."
They added that Clarkson failed to engage, which hampered the chances of resolving any disputes.
"Usually for applications like this, a business would speak to us so we can support it ensuring an application is compliant with planning policy,' they said.
Mr Clarkson went ahead and opened the restaurant in a barn on hits Cotswolds farm last year, citing what he described as a loophole in development rules.
But locals near the farm have complained. Residents of Chadlington in Oxfordshire say the traffic and disruption the attraction has brought are not in keeping with the otherwise quiet area.
The Mirror said the council has clamped down on it, with Mr Clarkson admitting defeat.
"It is a win for the community. I would like the whole thing shut down. We are just a small village and Diddly Squat Farm is in the wrong place," a resident said.
"We don't need a theme park in an area of natural beauty. The new year was ridiculous. You'd spend about 20 minutes trying to get into town."
Mr Clarkson has clashed repeatedly with West Oxfordshire council, including over an application for a farm track, which was also denied.
But the council denied having a "vendetta" against the outspoken TV presenter.
Council bosses added in their statement: "Throughout series two of Clarkson's Farm a lot of information was not included, or appears to have been misleading for viewers, leading to the narrative promoted by the series that the council has a vendetta against Mr Clarkson.
Jeremy Clarkson's neighbour 'can't understand' why Clarkson's denied planning permission
"A good example of this was the 'refusal' of the farm track where the show omitted the fact that Diddly Squat Farm had applied retrospectively for work that can only be applied for in advance meaning the council had no choice under law but to refuse it.
"Also, it was suggested that West Oxfordshire District Council had put cones along the road outside the farm which was not the case.
"We would like to be clear we treat each application fairly and objectively regardless of the individuals involved with the submission. This is also the case with the Diddly Squat Farm."
Mr Clarkson has come under fire in recent months over a column in which he fantasised about Meghan Markle being forced to parade naked through the streets. It was reported that ITV had fired him from his Who Wants To Be A Millionaire? gig, but both Mr Clarkson and the channel denied this.
