One of the most controversial developments in Cornwall in recent years will have to be removed after a planning inspector upheld an enforcement notice issued by Cornwall Council.

The Carbis Bay Hotel, which hosted last year's glamorous G7 summit of world leaders, had built three buildings containing nine meeting rooms they said were required for use by the likes of Boris Johnson and Joe Biden.

However, there was a small problem – they did not have planning permission to build the structures.

This week a planning inspector has agreed with Cornwall Council that the hotel has breached planning rules and should remove the buildings and restore the land to its original state.

It's a victory for the hundreds of people who wrote in to object, took part in demonstrations and for planning policy.

But to get the true story behind this saga we have to go back a little further to 2018 when the hotel submitted a planning application to Cornwall Council for four two-storey buildings on the same site where the offending development has been created.

This application was to create a spa centre along with three "Forest Lodges" which would provide additional accommodation for guests at the upmarket hotel.

Situated right at the front of the hotel's site sitting on the beachfront at Carbis Bay these lodges would provide stunning views across the bay.

The owners of the hotel – father and son Malcolm and Stephen Baker – had taken on the resort in 1981.

Since then they had invested millions of pounds to develop it into "one of the finest luxury hotels in Cornwall" – according to the design and access statement submitted with that 2018 application.

That document highlights the multiple awards that the hotel had picked up including gongs from Enjoy England, Westcountry Wedding Venue of the Year and prestigious AA rosettes for its cuisine.

The design and access statement said that the development of lodges was needed to "keep up with growing demand". And it was also said that it was needed to "help ensure the longer term sustainability of the business".

It said that the new lodges would help ensure that the hotel could provide a year-round offer which would help boost tourism in Cornwall.

However, planning officers were not convinced and they refused the planning application under delegated powers saying that the harm to the landscape would not be acceptable.

In their ruling they highlighted that the National Trust had objected to the plans saying "the proposed buildings are likely to diminish the important contribution made by the site to the undeveloped hillside, which forms the beautiful backdrop to the beach".

It should be noted that St Ives Town Council also submitted a "strongest possible objection" to the application which they said would have "unacceptable impact" on the footpath, beach and countryside.

That 2018 application also attracted 47 objections from members of the public, many of whom said that there had already been over development at the resort with suggestions the hotel owners had "overstepped the mark".

Then, in December 2020, came the announcement that Prime Minister Boris Johnson had selected Cornwall to host the G7 summit.

The event, which brings together world leaders from nations including the US, France, Germany, Canada and Japan, was to be held at the Carbis Bay Hotel. The announcement was hailed as being a chance for Cornwall to be placed in the international spotlight whilst also getting attention from the UK Government.

However, as preparations progressed for the event in March there were a number of complaints about the hotel clearing an area of trees and starting building work, without planning permission.

In a statement issued at the time the Carbis Bay Hotel said that there had been "misunderstanding" on social media about the works they were doing.

They stated: "Part of our long-standing plans for the estate included clearing a small self-seeded scrubland area to the side of the hotel, and work on this area started several years ago. We can confirm this was not ancient woodland and there are no badger setts on this piece of land.

"We are working closely with a local landscaping team to increase planting in this area replacing the scrubland with a plethora of trees and plants more suited to the coastal environment."

They concluded stating: "Carbis Bay Estate is committed to sustainability, and dedicated to protecting the environment now, and for generations to come."

These were hollow words for the protesters who claimed that the hotel was damaging wildlife habitats.

It's also interesting to note now that there was no reference to the building work which was going on at the time.

At this point Cornwall Council said that its enforcement officers were investigating whether any breach of planning had taken place. They then said that the hotel had submitted a planning application and so the council decided that it was better to let this go through the due process rather than issuing a stop notice.

However, council officers did urge the hotel that it would be better to suspend the works to allow the planning application to be decided in the usual way. That advice was ignored and the works continued.

At this time St Ives MP Derek Thomas and Cornwall Council leader Linda Taylor, who is councillor for the area, were asked to make their views clear on the works.

They issued a joint statement which started off highlighting the need for the G7 summit to be sustainable before stating: "It is however inevitable that when you host a gathering of world leaders, work will need to be done to ensure that the site, in this case the Carbis Bay Hotel, is safe, practical and can accommodate such a prestigious event.

"Derek Thomas and Cllr Taylor recognise the genuine concern regarding the groundworks and any proposed development in this beautiful bay and are adamant that any work that needs to take place to accommodate the summit must be able to be removed and the area returned to its former state, including nature recovery.

"Disruption is inevitable for people who enjoy this part of the coastline but Derek Thomas and Linda Taylor are working to ensure that all aspects of the G7 legacy are positive.

"Any plans that the hotel owner has for more permanent development are down to the hotel owner and down to the planning process running its course."

Some of the objectors and protesters highlighted that the Carbis Bay Hotel had been used as a venue for meetings and social events for the local branch of the Conservative Party. Indeed the West Cornwall and Isles of Scilly Conservatives website has details of events from an inaugural meeting in 2016, a dinner with the now Home Secretary Priti Patel to the most recent, a Freedom BBQ in July 2021.

St Ives Cornwall councillor Andrew Mitchell was more forthright in his comments on the issue saying that while it was a sensitive issue due to the G7 summit "that cannot and must not be an excuse for the planning system to be ridden roughshod over and the much talked about 'legacy' of G7 for Cornwall to be the further wanton destruction of Carbis Bay valley. I am not impressed".

The work continued, protests were held on the beach and the police were asked to investigate whether badger setts had been disturbed by the development. They found that no wildlife crimes had been committed.

It was then claimed by the Carbis Bay Hotel that the works were to build meeting rooms required for the G7 summit. The three buildings would house nine meeting rooms.

However, when asked whether the Government had asked for these facilities the Cabinet Office said it had not requested any additional rooms.

It stated that it was not involved in the planning application in any way and had not provided any funding for additional facilities.

Once the planning application had been submitted by the hotel it was noticed that some elements seemed remarkably similar to those for the rejected 2018 application.

A design and access statement submitted with the application explained that the conference rooms were required for the G7 summit "to provide smaller meeting room spaces for bilateral talks".

However, while the design and access statement is headed across seven of its nine pages as being for "Carbis Bay Conference Rooms" the last two pages are headed "Carbis Bay Forest Lodges" and appear to have been copied from the previous application for lodges in 2018.

In June 2021 Cornwall was a hive of activity with the largest police presence ever seen in the Duchy for the arrival of world leaders for the G7 summit.

Photos and video of the Carbis Bay Hotel were beamed around the world as the international press descended on Cornwall to cover the event.

World leaders enjoyed hospitality at the hotel and on the beach including a barbecue which also saw a flyover by the Red Arrows.

In the background the planning issue continued to rumble on – more than 400 people submitted comments objecting to the application. Every single one focusing on the damage to the environment, landscape and wildlife in the area.

But then, in September, Cornwall Council announced that it had launched enforcement proceedings against the hotel after it withdrew the planning application.

An enforcement notice was issued ordering the hotel to remove the buildings erected without planning permission and to return the site to its original state. They said this needed to be done within six months.

The hotel lodged an appeal against the enforcement notice, as permitted, and so, for the last few months, there has been a waiting game to see what the government appointed planning inspector would decide.

All interested parties were able to submit written representations which were considered by the inspector who, last month, went to Carbis Bay to view the site and see for himself what had been done.

This week he announced that decision – to uphold the enforcement notice and to dismiss the appeal by the hotel.

Outlining the planning balance of his decision Mr Jarratt said: "I have found very significant harm to the character and appearance of the landscape which is contrary to national and local policies. Whilst issues relating to ecology and biodiversity, and to drainage, coastal and land stability could be mitigated through the imposition of appropriately worded conditions these would not overcome the level of harm I have found.

"Although it is to the hotel's considerable credit that it has hosted the G7 summit and now wishes to adapt the meeting rooms to holiday accommodation, the economic benefits arising

from the development, despite attracting significant weight, are insufficient to outweigh the harm to the landscape."

So, what happens now? The enforcement notice as issued stands and, as it originally stated, the hotel has six months to comply with that notice.

Under the enforcement notice the hotel has been ordered to demolish the three buildings and to reinstate the land to its former level, gradient and condition before the development was undertaken.

Of course the hotel could decide to appeal against the appeal decision – if they choose to do this they will have to apply to the High Court if they think the planning inspectorate made a legal mistake.

In the meantime those who have campaigned against the development will be watching closely to make sure that Cornwall Council does enforce the notice and that the works undertaken do return the site to its original state.

The Carbis Bay Hotel has declined to comment on the matter.

Click here to see more G7 coverage.

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