Dartmoor wild camping ban lifted as campaigners win battle against wealthy landowners

Campaigners have won an appeal for the right to camp on Dartmoor National Park in Devon – in the latest twist in an ongoing row between nature enthusiasts and a wealthy couple who own part of the land. The bitter dispute which has divided Devon began when Alexander and Diana Darwall argued that some wild campers on their land caused problems to livestock and the environment – and sought a court declaration that members of the public could only pitch tents there overnight with their consent. Mr and Mrs Darwall won their High Court challenge against the Dartmoor National Park Authority (DNPA) in January, banning people from pitching up on their estate without consent. Ruling in favour of the couple in January, Justice Sir Julian Flaux decided that a 1985 law, which regulates access to moorland, does not provide a right to wild camp. But just weeks ago, the park authority asked appeal judges to overturn his decision, arguing he had the wrong interpretation of the nearly 40-year-old legislation. In a ruling on Monday, Sir Geoffrey Vos, Lord Justice Underhill and Lord Justice Newey granted the appeal, finding that the law ‘confers on members of the public the right to rest or sleep on the Dartmoor Commons, whether by day or night and whether in a tent or otherwise’ as long as bylaws are followed. Mr and Mrs Darwall keep cattle on Stall Moor, which forms part of their more than 3,450-acre estate in the southern part of Dartmoor. More follows on this breaking news story…