A millionaire has been forced to axe plans to save himself a two mile drive to his stables by cutting down protected trees at his Welsh home.

Supermarket chain owner Chris Kiley wanted to chop down some of the woodland and make a road through the nature reserve around his house.

But more than 150 objections meant Swansea Council rejected his plans, which would have seene a 98-metre track link his home with a small-holding where Mr Kiley, 67, keeps horses.

Council officers said there could be no reasonable justification for the move following local backlash.

Mr Kiley bought the £2.5m home with his now ex-wife Alice, 32, a former Miss Great Britain entrant who appeared on the TV food show Masterchef in 2013.

The house overlooks Caswell Bay on the Gower Peninsula, which was designated the UK’s first Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB).

The status makes winning planning approval much harder.

Mr Kiley’s application statement said 12 ‘small to medium’ trees would be felled for the track – but he promised to replace them.

It added: ‘Access tracks are common features in countryside locations such as this and the development is considered a modest addition which will have an acceptable impact on the wider Gower AONB.’

He said he wanted the track to cut down the current two-mile car journey from his home to the stables.

Among the 154 objections were Bishopston Community Council who said the track was not needed as there was already a path running alongside it.

The group also branded the plans ‘environmentally unacceptable’ because of the damage to trees and wildlife.

Preservation group The Gower Society also objected saying the proposals had a ‘possible undesirable impact upon the AONB and the prominent coastal slope’.

Swansea Council rejected his bid saying the planned track had ‘excessive width’ and would harm the rural character of the site.

It added that because of the existing path they could not grant permission, claiming ‘no reasonable justification or need’ had been shown.

Mr Kiley had previously fallen out with some neighbours and planners over a proposal to demolish the house and build a modern ‘Grand Designs’ style home instead.

Mr Kiley, who owns 31-strong supermarket chain CK Foodstore, said the home would fit ‘seamlessly’ into the character of the seafront.

Other neighbours previously accused Mr Kiley of felling trees at the site so the motorbike-loving businessman could build himself an off-road racing track.

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