Ergin Erbil posted a highly misleading video containing numerous falsehoods about Crews Hill Golf Club over the weekend, reports Joe Ives, Local Democracy Reporter

Screenshots from the Ergin Erbil video posted on X and Facebook

The leader of Enfield Council has doubled down on false claims he made in a social media video about a golf club – which have promopted an angry response from its manager.

Ergin Erbil recently published a video on both his Facebook and X accounts in which he falsely claimed Crews Hill Golf Club was not within the Green Belt and that it only has 20 members.

The video posted over the weekend shows the Labour council leader standing by the golf club responding to concerns from other political parties about new homes being built on the Green Belt.

In the social media post, which at the time of reporting had not been taken down, Cllr Erbil is pictured standing on Green Belt land, saying: “The Enfield Conservatives and Reform want you to believe that this is Green Belt.”

The Facebook post also includes text falsely stating: “Crews Hill Golf Course is not Green Belt.”

In the video, he goes on: “This is a golf course. It’s a waste of fresh water. If there was a foxes den or a warren or a rabbits den in this golf course, they would call pest control in.

“There is no wildlife that benefits from this golf course. We have a housing crisis. We have to build homes.”

The golf course is designated as a ‘site of importance for nature conservation’ (Sinc) – a designation supported by Enfield Council in its most recent Sinc review.

The council leader further claims: “This golf course has a max number of 20 members. It’s massive land for 20 members.”

Crews Hill Golf Club has since submitted a complaint to the council in which it states it has more than 400 members.

Speaking about the land which has been included within the potential 21,000-home ‘new town’ development of Crews Hill and ‘Chase Park’, as well as being earmarked for new homes in the council’s own draft Local Plan, Cllr Erbil says: “It’s man-made, it’s artificial – which is why it’s perfect for us to build 6,000 council homes, 4,000 genuinely affordable family-sized homes and private homes.”

The council’s draft Local Plan includes a target for 50% of new homes on Green Belt land to be designated as ‘affordable’.

Crews Hill Golf Club describes itself as a non-exclusive club with hundreds of members and non-members who play on it every year, and claims the course is home to a significant amount of wildlife.

General manager David Spring submitted a complaint following Cllr Erbil’s post and said other members would be doing the same. He said the club does not support any particular party – but is concerned by the claims and conduct of Cllr Erbil.

The complaint points out that the club’s golf course is, in fact, on Green Belt land, adding: “To state the opposite in a public forum is either reckless or knowingly misleading.

“Neither reflects the standard expected of an elected representative.”

David’s complaint describes the video’s thousands of views as “a significant number of residents who have potentially been misled” and adds: “Inaccurate claims, once circulated at this level, damage trust.”

If either the government’s new town or the council’s Local Plan is approved and housing plans go ahead, Crews Hill Golf Club would need to be closed.

The Local Democracy Reporting Service (LDRS) asked Enfield Labour for an explanation of the inaccuracies posted in the video and whether the council leader would be removing the post or issuing an apology.

In his response, Cllr Erbil did not apologise for the inaccuracies nor did he explain how he had sourced his false information.

He said: “Families in Enfield need homes. Too many local people are stuck on waiting lists, paying sky-high rents, or living in overcrowded housing. Enfield needs more council homes and genuinely affordable homes for local families.

“When people hear the words Green Belt, they picture open countryside, woodlands, and proper green space that everyone can enjoy. They do not picture private golf courses that most residents cannot access. Golf courses are not the same as genuine, publicly accessible Green Belt land. It’s important we are honest about that distinction.

“At Crews Hill [Golf Course], half of the development will legally have to be publicly accessible parkland. That means real green space, open to everyone. Not fenced off, not members-only. We can build new homes and increase access to nature at the same time.”

Cllr Erbil added: “We will not apologise for also believing that families in Enfield deserve a safe, secure, good-quality home they can afford.”

Crews Hill is the single largest Metropolitan Green Belt area in the borough where the council wants to allocate new housing. The plans, which could involve compulsory purchase orders on existing businesses as well as development on Green Belt land, have proved extremely divisive.

Last month a coalition called ‘Action for Enfield’s Future’ launched a campaign against the Crews Hill ‘new town’ site, listing eleven reasons why the area in north-west Enfield is “sub optimal” for housing development.

A decision from the government on each new town site, followed by a public consultation, is expected this spring.

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