Scottish government officials have given the green light to a controversial £1 billion golf resort project on the North Sea coast proposed by U.S. real estate tycoon Donald Trump.
The decision by national leaders overrules a rejection of Trump’s development near Aberdeen last November by a local planning authority. In taking control of the decision-making process, government ministers said the importance of the project to the nation justified the action.
“We are greatly honored by the positive decision and believe the people of Scotland will be happy with the final product,” Trump said in a statement issued after the ruling.
Trump plans to build two golf courses, a 450-room hotel and 500 homes on scenic coastal sand dunes. Environmental groups have opposed the project, claiming that plant and animal life would be damaged by the project and that the character of the community would be drastically changed.