Trump halts dealings with Menie resident

Michael Forbes is a vocal objector to the Trump venture


The Trump organisation has said it will have no further dealings with one of the property owners refusing to sell up to make way for a £1bn golf resort.

The move to sever links with Aberdeenshire resident Michael Forbes comes after a personal attack on him by Donald Trump.

Mr Forbes lives on the Menie Estate where the resort is due to be built.

Mr Trump, from his offices in New York, said Mr Forbes was a "loser" who was damaging the image of Scotland.

The attack came after Mr Forbes' mother, Molly Forbes, launched a legal challenge in a bid to stop the building of the golf course on her land.

The 84-year-old said she was seeking an interim interdict over the decision to grant planning permission for five pockets of land not owned by Mr Trump's company.

'Personal vendetta'

Papers lodged with the court claim Aberdeenshire Council did not determine the planning applications correctly, and that Trump Golf Links Scotland did not give enough information about why it now needed the land.

But Mr Trump said the claims were "misguided" and not based on fact.

He went on to accuse Mr Forbes of exploiting his elderly mother to further his cause.

Donald Trump Jnr oversaw the initial work on the estate


In a statement he said: "It is tragic that an elderly woman is being exploited to further the personal vendetta of Michael Forbes and his few supporters.

"He [Mr Forbes] is a loser who is seriously damaging the image of both Aberdeenshire and his great country."

He added: "We will not be distracted by the rants of the local village idiot and intend to vigorously defend any challenge to our project."

But Mrs Forbes said that Aberdeenshire Council had rushed to allow the project to go ahead and it had "grievously let down local residents".

She added that she would not be giving up her battle and she urged both the council and the Trump empire to think again about going ahead with the project.

Mrs Forbes is being represented by the Environmental Law Centre Scotland, a charity offering legal advice and help on environmental matters.