A MILLIONAIRE businessman who put up an electric fence around his home to counter his wife’s fear of foxes is at war with his furious council.
The fence around David Walsh’s £44million mansion in Notting Hill, west London, has been described as something from a “prisoner of war camp”.
Mr Walsh bought the luxurious four-storey pad alongside his wife, Jyotsna Chadha, in 2023.
Earlier this year, the couple decided to erect the animal countermeasure, citing “fox prevention purposes” in planning documents.
A warning sign is adorned on the barrier, which is typically used to surround farm enclosures.
But furious neighbours in the picturesque suburb have labelled the electric fence “ugly” and likened it to the exterior of a “POW camp”.
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Kensington and Chelsea Council said the installation was an “unwelcome addition” in the area.
However, Mr Walsh accused his local authority of “looking at the wrong photos” in the planning application.
Speaking to the Daily Mail, he fumed: “It’s none of your business. I’ve got a wife who is very, very scared of foxes – you got a problem with that?
“The council has got very confused, they’ve looked at the wrong photos.
“We actually have a much better plan that is much more discreet, but they looked at the wrong photos.”
And the fence is reportedly backed by Mr Walsh’s immediate neighbour, whose boundary wall is being used for the equipment.
Siding with his next-door neighbour, he agreed with the measure and admitted he was sick of foxes “digging up our trash”.
The Ladbroke Association, a community group founded in 1969, aims to “care for the beauty, history and character of the neighbourhood”.
In an objection to the barrier, it raised public safety concerns and the potential danger for people walking past the home.
A spokesperson for the group said: “In our original objection, we expressed concern about the public safety aspects of this scheme…
“…there should be conditions requiring a minimum strength of current and adequate public liability insurance.
“We were surprised that, in the officers’ report, this was considered outside the scope of the planning assessment.
“We would see “other hazards” as encompassing electric fences with which members of the public could interact, especially in urban areas.
“We do not see the reference to areas where numbers of people congregate as excluding other areas where there is a threat to the public.
“… we believe that public safety should be seen as a material planning consideration in this case.”
In official enforcement papers, the council suggested it would be a “fortification” of Mr Walsh’s palatial home.
The council said: “The proposed electric fencing by reason of its design, height and prominent siting would read as an unwelcome addition…
“…resulting in the fortification of the site and failing to preserve the character and appearance of the building, street scene and wider conservation area.”
