CONFUSION surrounds the fate of the Hope Inn in Bridgwater following an application to demolish the building.

Sedgemoor District Council received the application for proposed demolition on October 31, prompting angry reactions from community groups desperate to save the building.

However Land Promotions Ltd has told the Mercury it has no intention of knocking down the pub until planning permission is granted for redevelopment on the site.

A statement said: “We will continue to market the property for sale. It has been for sale since October, 2013.

“If no credible offers come forward for commercial uses, we will examine the opportunity for much-needed housing in sustainable locations, subject to planning permission.”

Last month the pub was successfully registered as an asset of community value through the Government’s Right to Bid legislation.

But Cllr Brian Smedley, who has been leading the campaign to save the pub, labelled the legislation ‘useless’ as it will not stop the landowners going through with the demolition if they see fit.

A spokesperson for Sedgemoor District Council said the council has no power to stop a landowner from demolishing a building outside conservation areas, adding: “We do have the power to ask the developer to submit further information for our ‘prior approval’ but this only relates to the means of demolition and the subsequent means of site restoration.”