Lord Lonsdale said Blencathra is not for sale. Photo: Bob Smith/grough
A community group said it is still actively pursuing the purchase of a Lake District mountain, despite its owner saying it is no longer for sale.
Hugh Lowther said he has no intention of parting with Blencathra and his family will retain ownership for generations to come.
But the Friends of Blencathra, which was set up to try to buy the mountain when the Eighth Earl of Lonsdale announced he was selling it, said it will continue making the case for taking over ownership of the fell, also known as Saddleback.
The group said it was pushing for a meeting with the earl’s representatives.
Lord Lowther told The Cumberland News: “Blencathra is 100 per cent off the market. It’s not for sale.
“What’s happened is that the taxman wasn’t prepared to wait for the sale so I had to pay him in another way.”
The aristocrat had originally put the mountain on the market to raise cash for an inheritance tax bill from HM Revenue and Customs.
He told the newspaper: “It was a way of solving the problem without affecting other people’s lives but we’ve solved it in another way.
“We’re not going to spend any more time on it. It’s all back to normal. Everything is as before.”
The Friends of Blencathra, which has collected thousands of pounds in donations from members of the public and attracted support from the company that owns the Berghaus brand, said it had been briefed by its legal team.
The charity said its lawers told it: “The trustee executors (Lonsdale Estates) and their lawyers, Kerman & Co, with whom the charity has dealt with to date are all but out of the equation. The particular need to sell the mountain has passed.
“Nevertheless the eighth earl is prepared to sell the mountain to the charity, as we have understood all along. The price is suggested to be £1.3m plus VAT.”
It added: “The trustees of FoB are still intent on arranging the meeting with the trustees from Lonsdale Settled Estates.
“Unfortunately the legal team are now not in a position to do this immediately following the turmoil created by Brexit as they currently have more pressing business interests to manage. Equally, Brexit is likely to impact on the management of the Lonsdale Estates.
“We will update the group next month but considering the change in the ownership of the asset and the impact of Brexit has been so recent, it would be somewhat premature at this stage to respond negatively to the calls to throw in the towel.
“The trustees are still prepared to work towards the purchase of Blencathra for the community, assuming we still have the support of the legal team following Brexit to achieve the objects of the charity.”
Acclaimed writer Alfred Wainwright called Blencathra ‘the mountaineers’ mountain.’ It was also the subject of film-maker Terry Abraham’s recent release Blencathra: Life of a Mountain.
MuddyBoots
30 June 20161.3 million? Something isn't right here. After paying off their inheritance tax, Lonsdale Estates initially said they no longer needed to sell but - if they were to sell, it would be for a lot higher than the original asking price. Now the dramatic drop?! Just very, very odd...
Jill Caine
01 July 2016FOB is a charity, yet no accounts, auditors or chairman's reports have been submitted to the Charity Commission. None. They are three months late submitting the accounts for 2014/2015! FOB is holding £250,000 of donated monies. Monies that they have promised will be refunded (all those donations in excess of £10), but they refuse. They continue to say 'negotiations are ongoing' even though the Earl, the Land Agent and the Lowther Estate Office have told me the mountain has been taken off the market! FOB have now found a new reason to delay repayment - Brexit!! I have campaigned for many months to achieve repayment of our donations, which has resulted in me being banned from the Facebook group Friends of Blencathra. I am not alone. Anyone who questions the group is met with abuse and then banned. If it didn't involve people's money, it would be laughable. You really could not make this story up and make it believable!
dave wheeler
02 July 2016have a look at the facebook site, friends of blencathra please say no. The truth is on there not on the charities lying facebook site
Heather Rose
02 July 2016I think someone who posts as Dave Wheeler (the Chair of Friends of Blencathra) to criticise the charity would do well not to use the name of another person to make his comments. A person who I believe is making thoughtful and honest decisions. Everyone who has invested time, money and support into the group awaits the eventual outcome, whatever that be. I don't have an issue with your opinion but hiding behind the name of the Chair to state your opinion is shabby.
MuddyBoots
02 July 2016Clearly the 'Dave Wheeler' here is not the real one as I doubt the new chair of the charity would post that! Silly person. The 'charity' is in denial - it's farcical now. People have donated money in good faith but the time has come to admit defeat and return donations. Why fight an imaginary battle???
Reasonable \'Friend\' of Blencathra
03 July 2016Why would the Chair of this charity post to mention a dodgy site set up to discredit the charity by a bunch of conspiracy theorists? And why would any person in their right mind donate to a charitable cause then 'campaign' to get their alleged donation refunded? Bonkers!
Peter Bennett
05 July 2016I have contributed several posts to FoB suggesting that the circumstantial evidence means we should throw in the towel, but I've stopped 'campaigning' for 4 reasons:
1. I'm not desperate to get my money back (it wasn't a trivial amount).
2. The FoB lead team has integrity.
3. Due diligence suggests the potential seller can be eccentric.
4. FoB's legal advice is given pro bono - why would they wish to prolong the process unnecessarily?