PAUL UNDER FIRE FROM NEIGHBOURS OVER PLANS TO STRIP THOUSANDS OF TREES FROM HIS SCOTTISH ESTATE

McCartney bought farm in 1966 with Linda and lived there in 70s

There are plans to remove 300 lorry-loads of timber per year from estate

Neighbours say trucks driving down single-track road will be dangerous

Neighbours of Beatles legend Sir Paul McCartney spoke of their fury yesterday over his plans to strip thousands of trees from his Scottish estate.

The trees will be uprooted from the singer's 600-acre High Park Farm near Campbeltown in Argyll and Bute as part of a forestry maintenance programme.

McCartney's management company is understood to have proposed to move 300 lorry loads of timber a year using a single track road.

Neighbours say plans to remove 300 lorry-loads of timber a year from Paul's Scottish farm down a single-track road are unsafe (Paul pictured on the farm in 1970 with Linda)

But nearby residents already endure heavy vehicles using surrounding roads to service a quarry, and have said adding more vehicles is dangerous to pedestrians and other drivers.

Colin Chrystie, of Upper Ballywilline Farm, said: 'We are already at saturation point. This wood could easily be taken out another road on McCartney's estate which joins the A83 at his Craig's Farm.

'My son and his partner have just built a house opposite me and they have a four-week-old daughter and there is no way you would want to push a pram on that road.

'It is a dangerous, single-track road with blind corners, potholes and limited passing places.'

Colin lives at the foot of a steep hill which is particularly difficult for both cars and lorries to climb.

He said: 'I'm not sure McCartney is even aware of this proposal. I think if he knew, he would see sense, he's a family man.

Paul purchased the farm in 1966 and moved there with first wife Linda and his children in 1970 after The Beatles split up

'I've met him lots of times and think he would listen. He's always respected this area and his neighbours always protected his privacy when the media came sniffing around.

'We have been very loyal to him.'

Sir Paul, 72, shocked his fans around the world when he purchased the farm in 1966.

He later moved there with his wife Linda and their children for peace and quiet after the band's infamous break-up in 1970.

His family used the farm to grow their own food and keep horses for riding around the local countryside.

Neighbours were known to frequently send reporters looking to find High Park on wild goose chases to places as remote as the Mull of Kintyre.

Paul said the beauty of the peaceful and rugged area saved him from a nervous breakdown caused by the pressures of his stardom.

Since Linda's death at the age of 56 from breast cancer in 1998 he began severing ties to the area, but there is a memorial garden in Campbeltown named in her memory.

William Taverner, who also lives close to the farm, said: 'I have three young children and I am concerned about road safety.

'It is busy enough with quarry lorries. Timber lorries would be too much.

'Mr McCartney is perfectly entitled to take out his timber, I just hope he looks at this differently.'

Local councillor John Semple said: 'There have already been concerns about the safety of those using Gobagrennan Road.

'It is also part of the Kintyre Way and well used by cyclists and walkers.'

A spokesman for McCartney's management team, MPL, said: 'Plans for felling have been underway for some time in the interest of good forestry management.

'No decision have been made on how the wood will exit the estate. All available options are being explored taking into account a whole range of factors including impact on residents.'