AFTER £40,000 in fees and a criminal conviction, llama keeper Alastair Fraser has been asked to pay council tax for the years he was ‘illegally’ living on his Alvington farm.

Despite a planning inspector ruling that Mr Fraser was allowed to build stables and live on Servernwye Farm on Spout Hill in November last year, He is being asked for back payments of council tax since 2013 when he moved onto the site.

Mr Fraser, who has kept two donkeys, two mules, four horses, 12 llamas, eight rescued wild boar, five goats and a male yak on his farm, believes the charge, which amounts to around £3,000 is ‘absurd’ and that he should be charged from the moment the inspector ruled in his favour.

He said: “We offered to pay council tax when we first moved in.

“We have always paid our rates in the past we don’t have a record of being non-payers but we will be appealing the division as we should be charged from the time of the inspector’s decision.”

A spokesperson for the District Council said: “A Billing Authority must bill and collect council tax based upon dwellings (properties) contained within the Valuation List.

“If Mr Fraser disputes the date from which his property has been included in the list from, he should contact the Valuation Office Agency with a view to making an appeal.”For the full story buy The Forester.