Mews Lanes Musings.

As with the rest of the United Kingdom mews lanes are a feature of terrace housing in Northern Ireland's towns and cities. Barely a week goes by without some local paper commenting on the state of these routes of passage. They seem to attract fly tipping. Perhaps this is because they tend to be rather unkempt and untidy.

Who then is responsible for keeping them in a safe and rubbish free state? Well it appears that neither local nor central government has any responsibility. In the case of Northern Ireland Housing Executive estates that entity would clearly have a responsibility but otherwise some Company or private individual has the legal responsibility or perhaps there is someone else who is in the firing line. Let us think of a situation where a limited liability company has developed an area of housing. True this is likely to be an oldish development if there is a mews lane involved but in such circumstances if the developing company goes into liquidation and the liquidator does nothing about the asset that is a mews lane then presumably title passes to the Crown under the principles of bona vacantia.