Anger over Birling Gap demolition

A ROW of historic terraced cottages built 135 years ago for the Coastguards at Birling Gap are being demolished one by one because they are in danger of falling into the sea.

Demolition of cottage number two began on Monday. The Birling Gap Cliff Protection Association, chaired by Lord Harris of High Cross, has spoken out against what it calls 'the destruction of yet another part of Britain's proud heritage'.

Lord Harris said: 'The destroyer is not the cruel sea, nor Bin Laden, but the National Trust and similar official bureaucracies.'

The cottages were constructed in 1866 but were sold to an estate agent in 1951 when the coastguards decamped. They were then sold on or rented to individuals.

More than 60,000 people recently signed a Cliff Protection Association petition supporting the creation of sea defences, which would slow the natural erosion of the cliffs and help prolong the life of the cottages. Wealden Council officers confirmed that this was a possibility.

'But instead,' said Lord Harris, 'the National Trust a widely revered charity supported by voluntary donations worth millions of pounds is spending a colossal sum on demolishing another seven of the historic cottages.

'They led others in arguing that revetment would not be effective. They also feared it would create a precedent, despite the existence of similar defences at Seaford Head, Eastbourne, Pevensey, Brownsea Island, Fairlight, Kingston, near Deal, and soon at Hayling Island.'

The defence plans were overruled by a Government planning officer because, said Lord Harris, 'English Nature strained science to claim it would ruin research, and Sussex Downs Conservation Board strained geography by claiming a 30-yard revetment constructed with white rocks would ruin the view'.

'Limited life'

Richard Worsell, a member of the association since its foundation eight years ago, recently purchased cottage number three. He said the National Trust was offering its previous owner just 1 for the property, which was going to be demolished at a cost of 50,000.

'Some people have called me mad for wanting to buy a cottage that has such a limited life,' he said. 'But I just wanted to save this important cottage from the National Trust. They wanted to destroy it as soon as possible, which I thought was disgusting.'

A spokesman from the National Trust said that the cottage demolished this week was 'unsafe due to its proximity to the cliff edge at Birling Gap'.

She added: 'The Trust has worked closely with Wealden District Council and engineers to ensure that the demolition works are carried out carefully in order to extend the life of the remaining cottages as much as possible.'

The Trust believes that the cliffs should be allowed to erode naturally.

Lord Harris said last week: 'This is irreversible. Over the next week or so we must stand sadly by and watch the demolition men do their worst. It is another nail in the coffin of local democracy and justice.'