Latest news with #JusticeSaini
The Sun
6 days ago
- Politics
- The Sun
Wimbledon expansion plan set to proceed after High Court ruling
WIMBLEDON 's controversial expansion plan is set to go ahead after a legal challenge against the decision to approve the proposal was dismissed by a High Court judge on Monday. The 'Save Wimbledon Park' campaign group took action against the Greater London Authority's decision last year to grant a planning permission that would almost triple the size of the site for the grass-court Grand Slam. The proposals would see the construction of 38 new tennis courts and an 8,000-seat stadium on the grounds of the former Wimbledon Park Golf Club, which would allow it to host All England Club qualifiers on site instead of across south London at Roehampton. The campaign group's barristers told the High Court earlier this month that the decision to approve the plans was 'irrational' and should be quashed, as Wimbledon Park was covered by restrictions on how it could be used. But Wimbledon chiefs defended the challenge, with the court told that the decision was a 'planning judgement properly exercised' and that the restrictions were not 'material'. In a ruling on Monday, Justice Saini dismissed the challenge. 'In short, the defendant's decision on the relevance of deliverability, applying to both the statutory trust and the restrictive covenants, was a planning judgement rationally exercised and having regard to appropriate and relevant factors,' he said. Planning permission for the scheme was initially granted by Jules Pipe, London's deputy mayor for planning, who said that the proposals 'would facilitate very significant benefits' which 'clearly outweigh the harm'. Following Monday's High Court ruling, the campaign group said it had been 'advised that it should' seek to challenge the decision. 'SWP is not taking this step lightly but believes that the GLA did make a significant legal error in the way it dealt with the special legal status of the park,' a statement said. The latest edition of Wimbledon concluded on July 13, with Jannik Sinner winning the men's title and Iga Swiatek lifting the women's trophy.
Hans India
7 days ago
- Sport
- Hans India
Wimbledon's expansion plans boosted as judge dismisses legal challenge
London: Wimbledon'sexpansion plans, which would almost triple the size of the tennis tournament grounds, received a boost on Monday when a judge dismissed a campaign group's legal challenge. The Save Wimbledon Park group took legal action against the Greater London Authority's decision to grant planning per-mission last year. Aside from concerns about the environment and overall scale, opponents ar-gued that the adjacent property that was a golf course when the All England Club bought it in 2018 is subject to restrictions that favor preservation of open spaces for the public. Wimbledon's plan includes adding an 8,000-seat stadi-um with a retractable roof and 38 other grass courts that would allow the All England Club to move its qualifying event on-site to boost attendance and revenue. 'In short, the defendant's decision on the relevance of deliverability, applying to both the statutory trust and the restrictive covenants, was a planning judg-ment rationally exercised and having regard to appropriate and relevant fac-tors,' judge Justice Saini said. Wimbledon is the only Grand Slam tournament that holds its qualifying rounds at a completely separate location. There are also too few practice courts in the current setup, requiring some of the world's best players to share courts. 'We are delighted that Mr. Justice Saini has dismissed the challenge to the GLA's decision to grant planning permission for our plans to transform the former Wimbledon Park golf course,' said Deborah Jevans, chair of the All England Club. 'It is clear that we have a robust planning permission that enables us to create a permanent home for the Wimbledon qualifying competition as well as deliv-ering 27 acres of beautiful new park land for local people, providing public ac-cess to land that has been a private golf course for over 100 years,' Jevans added. The next hurdle in the process is a hearing in January over whether there is a statutory trust over the former golf course land.
National Post
21-07-2025
- Sport
- National Post
Wimbledon could triple tournament size after judge's ruling
LONDON — Wimbledon's expansion plans, which would almost triple the size of the tennis tournament grounds, received a boost Monday when a judge dismissed a campaign group's legal challenge. Article content The Save Wimbledon Park group took legal action against the Greater London Authority's decision to grant planning permission last year. Article content Article content Aside from concerns about the environment and overall scale, opponents argued that the adjacent property that was a golf course when the All England Club bought it in 2018 is subject to restrictions that favor preservation of open spaces for the public. Article content Wimbledon's plan includes adding an 8,000-seat stadium with a retractable roof and 38 other grass courts that would allow the All England Club to move its qualifying event on-site to boost attendance and revenue. Article content 'In short, the defendant's decision on the relevance of deliverability, applying to both the statutory trust and the restrictive covenants, was a planning judgment rationally exercised and having regard to appropriate and relevant factors,' judge Justice Saini said. Article content Wimbledon is the only Grand Slam tournament that holds its qualifying rounds at a completely separate location. There are also too few practice courts in the current setup, requiring some of the world's best players to share courts. Article content 'We are delighted that Mr. Justice Saini has dismissed the challenge to the GLA's decision to grant planning permission for our plans to transform the former Wimbledon Park golf course,' said Deborah Jevans, chair of the All England Club. Article content 'It is clear that we have a robust planning permission that enables us to create a permanent home for the Wimbledon qualifying competition as well as delivering 27 acres of beautiful new park land for local people, providing public access to land that has been a private golf course for over 100 years,' Jevans added. Article content
San Francisco Chronicle
21-07-2025
- Sport
- San Francisco Chronicle
Wimbledon's expansion plans boosted when judge dismisses legal challenge
LONDON (AP) — Wimbledon's expansion plans, which would almost triple the size of the tennis tournament grounds, received a boost Monday when a judge dismissed a campaign group's legal challenge. The Save Wimbledon Park group took legal action against the Greater London Authority's decision to grant planning permission last year. Aside from concerns about the environment and overall scale, opponents argued that the adjacent property that was a golf course when the All England Club bought it in 2018 is subject to restrictions that favor preservation of open spaces for the public. Wimbledon's plan includes adding an 8,000-seat stadium with a retractable roof and 38 other grass courts that would allow the All England Club to move its qualifying event on-site to boost attendance and revenue. 'In short, the defendant's decision on the relevance of deliverability, applying to both the statutory trust and the restrictive covenants, was a planning judgment rationally exercised and having regard to appropriate and relevant factors,' judge Justice Saini said. Wimbledon is the only Grand Slam tournament that holds its qualifying rounds at a completely separate location. There are also too few practice courts in the current setup, requiring some of the world's best players to share courts. 'We are delighted that Mr. Justice Saini has dismissed the challenge to the GLA's decision to grant planning permission for our plans to transform the former Wimbledon Park golf course,' said Deborah Jevans, chair of the All England Club. 'It is clear that we have a robust planning permission that enables us to create a permanent home for the Wimbledon qualifying competition as well as delivering 27 acres of beautiful new park land for local people, providing public access to land that has been a private golf course for over 100 years,' Jevans added. The next hurdle in the process is a hearing in January over whether there is a statutory trust over the former golf course land. ___
Leader Live
21-07-2025
- Politics
- Leader Live
Wimbledon expansion set to proceed after campaign group loses legal challenge
Save Wimbledon Park (SWP) took legal action against the Greater London Authority's (GLA) decision to grant planning permission last year. The proposals, submitted by the All England Club, would see the construction of 38 new tennis courts and an 8,000-seat stadium on the grounds of the former Wimbledon Park Golf Club, allowing it to host Wimbledon qualifiers on-site. Barristers for SWP told the High Court earlier this month that the decision to approve the plans was 'irrational' and should be quashed, as Wimbledon Park – a Grade II*-listed heritage site partly designed by Lancelot 'Capability' Brown – was covered by restrictions on how it could be used. The GLA and the All England Club defended the challenge, with the court told that the decision was a 'planning judgment properly exercised' and that the restrictions were not 'material'. In a ruling on Monday, Mr Justice Saini dismissed the challenge. He said: 'In short, the defendant's decision on the relevance of deliverability, applying to both the statutory trust and the restrictive covenants, was a planning judgment rationally exercised and having regard to appropriate and relevant factors.' Following the ruling, SWP said it has been 'advised that it should' seek to challenge the decision, and that it believed the GLA 'did make a significant legal error in the way it dealt with the special legal status of the park'. The proposals would see seven maintenance buildings, access points, and an area of parkland with permissive public access constructed, in addition to the courts and associated infrastructure. They would also include work on Wimbledon Lake. After Merton Council approved the plans, but Wandsworth Council rejected them, the Mayor of London's office took charge of the application, but Mayor Sir Sadiq Khan recused himself from the process after previously expressing public support for the development. Planning permission for the scheme was granted by Jules Pipe, London's deputy mayor for planning, who said that the proposals 'would facilitate very significant benefits' which 'clearly outweigh the harm'. Debbie Jevans, chairwoman of the All England Club, said at the time that the proposals would deliver 27 acres of 'newly accessible parkland for the community'. In written submissions, Sasha White KC said that the All England Club acquired the freehold for the golf course in 1993 and the leasehold in 2021. The barrister told the two-day hearing in London that the land was subject to a 'statutory trust requiring it to be kept available for public recreation use' and that when the freehold was acquired, the club entered into 'restrictive covenants' governing its use. He said this meant any plans could not 'restrict its use so as not to impair the appreciation of the general public of the extent or openness of the golf course land'. He continued that separate High Court proceedings were ongoing over whether a statutory trust existed, and that if it does, the All England Club has 'accepted' that this is 'incompatible with the development of the proposal'. A hearing in that case is due to take place in January 2026. In court, he said: 'You could not have a more protected piece of land within the planning system, frankly.' Mark Westmoreland Smith KC, for the GLA, said in written submissions that Mr Pipe received 'detailed advice' over the 'relevance' of the 'alleged' trust and covenants, and made his decision on the assumption that they existed. The barrister said that the decision was a 'planning judgment properly exercised and having regard to the appropriate and relevant factors'. This scheme will bring a significant range of economic, social, cultural and environmental benefits to the local area, the wider capital and the UK economy, creating new jobs and green spaces. — Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan (@MayorofLondon) July 21, 2025 He said that planning officers 'advised that the alleged obstacle' that the restrictions would present 'was not itself a material consideration'. In his written arguments, Russell Harris KC, for the All England Club, said that planning officers 'acknowledged and had regard to' the trust and covenants. In his 31-page ruling, Mr Justice Saini said that the authority 'properly considered the implications of the development on public open space'. Christopher Coombe, director of SWP, said following the judgment: 'This judgment would, if it stands, set a worrying precedent for the unwanted development of protected green belt and public open spaces around London and across the country. 'The (All England Club) will surely have noted the considerable public outrage about this development, most recently expressed outside the law courts, and we continue to hope that they could be persuaded to engage constructively with us, with a view to achieving a resolution of this four-year-old dispute.' Sir Sadiq said: 'This is welcome news that will cement Wimbledon's reputation as the greatest tennis competition in the world and London as the sporting capital of the world. 'This scheme will bring a significant range of economic, social, cultural and environmental benefits to the local area, the wider capital and the UK economy, creating new jobs and green spaces.' Ms Jevans said in a statement that the All England Club was 'delighted' with the ruling. She said: 'It is clear that we have a robust planning permission that enables us to create a permanent home for the Wimbledon qualifying competition as well as delivering 27 acres of beautiful new parkland for local people, providing public access to land that has been a private golf course for over 100 years. 'We have spoken to more than 10,000 people who have taken the time to come in person and understand our plans in detail. 'The vast majority of people just want us to get on and deliver the many benefits on offer as soon as possible.'
