UPDATE: Result of consultation over Vivary Park homes plan revealed - it was an April fool! 

URGENT talks are being held this morning after a foreign housing developer exploited a loophole to reveal plans for a 500-homes development in Vivary Park.

Under an ancient law known as il par folo a Scandinavian firm has laid claim to the 'jewel in Taunton's crown'.

It won't cost the company a penny to take possession of the park and the local council is helpless to do anything about it.

Forapillo, which is based in Copenhagen, has uncovered documents from 200 years ago showing the park was never legally sold to its presumed owner at the time.

It has emerged that William Kinglake failed to hand over the money when he 'bought' Vivary Park from its then owner John Hamnett.

That means the 'sale' of the park by the Kinglake family to the Municipal Borough of Taunton for £3,659 in 1894 was invalid as it legally still belonged to Hamnett's descendants.

Bosses at Forapillo discovered the anomaly and managed to trace down John Hamnett's great great great grandson living in Denmark and he agreed to hand over ownership of the park to the company to avoid a potential tax bill.

Forapillo has now drawn up plans for hundreds of homes in the park as councillors from all parties frantically try to stave off the threat of the loss of the park in meetings taking place throughout the morning.

The talks are due to end at 12 noon - if you come back to the website at that time we'll let you know the outcome.