Bag a bargain: former RAF station - complete with high-security fence, underground bunker and a helipad - for sale on eBay

AppId is over the quota
AppId is over the quota

The Neatishead radar base in Norfolk opened in 1941 and played a key role in monitoring the skies during the cold war and the Second World War.

It was decommissioned in 2006 and has since been largely unused and a new owner is being sought.

An asking price of £2.5 million has been set putting the 25-acre site firmly out of the reach of all but the most affluent eBay bargain hunters.

While this is described as a "substantial" reduction from its previous value, the seller stressed that serious bids would be needed.

Agent Nick Barlow, from Midlands-based Barlow Associates, said the base had been on the market for some time and he hoped the eBay listing would attract extra interest.

He said: "There's only so much you can do in property magazines so we thought we'd try this and it has proved remarkably effective.

"It is something slightly different for people who wouldn't otherwise have heard about it.

"The site has potential for a wide range of uses. The underground bunker would be a very good data storage centre and its proximity to the Norfolk Broads and the coast open up leisure possibilities."

Mr Barlow added that while the sale was unusual, cuts to defence budgets mean more opportunities are likely to open up for anyone wanting to invest in a former military base.

There are 16 buildings on the site, including former radar rooms, tennis and squash courts, station headquarters and the old officers' mess.

The underground bunker dates from the Cold War years,

Birmingham-based Stylespace bought the land from the RAF in 2006 for a reported £4 million but it has proved unsuitable for their plans.

The RAF still carries out communication work for aircraft on a small part of the site. This would remain, alongside the RAF Air Defence Radar Museum, which was established on the air base 14 years ago.

Although the page has attracted 5,000 hits, so far no offers have been made. Bidding ends next Friday.

It is also being sold through the website http://www.barlowassociates.net.

View the original article here

Plebgate: Second officer arrested over alleged conspiracy that led to resignation of former chief whip Andrew Mitchell

AppId is over the quota
AppId is over the quota

A 46-year-old member of the Diplomatic Protection Group (DPG) was arrested at work and taken to a central London police station for questioning on suspicion of misconduct in public office over alleged leaks to the media about the affair.

The officer was not present at the time of the dispute between Mr Mitchell and officers on duty outside Downing Street when officers claimed that he swore at them and used the term pleb. Mr Mitchell admits swearing but denies directing it at the officers and using the politically-toxic term.

Details of the confrontation first appeared in the media on September 19, which led to a campaign against the politician by factions of the Police Federation and Mr Mitchell’s eventual resignation. However CCTV pictures and the revelation that an email backing up the officers’ story was sent by a colleague led to Tory MPs claiming that Mr Mitchell had been brought low by a police plot.

The policeman is the second officer to be arrested over the affair. A 52-year-old colleague was arrested in December over the same offence and has been bailed until late February.

A man, 23, who was not a policeman, was also arrested on December on suspicion of aiding misconduct in public office and is also on bail.

It emerged today that four other officers from the DPG, which protects embassies, foreign dignitaries and sensitive sites like Downing Street, had been issued with disciplinary notices informing them that they faced misconduct inquiries. Three of them have been moved to restricted duties, Scotland Yard said.

Metropolitan Police Commissioner Sir Bernard Hogan-Howe, has said that he would embark on a “relentless pursuit of the truth” in an investigation – Operation Alice – that has cost tens of thousands of pounds. It is being run by the force’s own disciplinary unit and supervised by the Independent Police Complaints Commission.

However critics have raised concerns that the high-profile inquiry is being carried out by officers from the same force as the people they are investigating, instead of bringing in outside officers.

View the original article here