A west Suffolk man who went on hunger strike amid a council planning row has been given new hope as enforcement action against him has been dropped.
Tony Edgar lives in Stanley Lodge off Fen Road in Pakenham, a bungalow he said he built under permitted development in 2010 as an outbuilding for his former home, Newbury.
However, Mr Edgar was faced with enforcement action on the home, meaning he would have to leave the property, as it had not been permitted for independent residential use, which led him to begin a hunger strike in an attempt to draw attention to his plight.
West Suffolk Council has now decided to drop the enforcement action against him, instead giving him options to reapply for planning permission or for lawful use of the building as a dwelling.
"I am grateful that the council have understood my position. It wasn't a position that was made by myself it was the position I found myself in, so I am pleased they are helping," Mr Edgar said.
"We are applying for lawful use, so hopefully this this is going to go through quite smoothly and that will be the end of it and I can try and get on with my life again."
After suffering a stroke in 2014, and losing his wife just two years later, Mr Edgar, a former builder who is now unable to work, said he moved into Stanley Lodge after he opted to rent and eventually sell Newbury, in 2020.
In February, a West Suffolk Council spokesperson said enforcement officers visited the site in 2010 and numerous times after warning Mr Edgar that the building was not to be used as a home.
An application for continued use of the bungalow as a dwelling was refused by West Suffolk Council on February 9.
West Suffolk Council approved permission for a garage next to the property in July 2023.
On Tuesday, a council spokesperson said: "Based on newly presented materially relevant medical evidence relating to the history of this planning enforcement, the council has withdrawn the enforcement notice and ended its enforcement action against Stanley Lodge.
"Mr Edgar has been advised of this and the planning options open to him."
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