Public inquiry to decide on £1bn Scottish golf resort plans

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by Lin Freestone

Donald Trump, the US billionaire, appeared yesterday at a public inquiry in Aberdeen to defend his plans to build in the north-east of Scotland what he considers will be the world’s greatest golf course.

The £1bn proposal to build two championship golf courses, a five-star 450-bedroomed hotel, 960 timeshare apartments and 500 private houses on a three-mile stretch of coastline near Balmedie, 13 miles north of Aberdeen, has been condemned by environmental groups who consider that it will cause irreversible damage to a protected area of sand dunes.

The proposals were narrowly rejected by Aberdeenshire Council in November last year.

The hearing, chaired by James McCulloch, Scotland’s most experienced planning inquiry reporter, will hear from more than 30 witnesses over the next few weeks.

The plans will be considered by the panel until early July, and a decision will be made at some point after that.