星空传媒

Ms O'Byrne joined Croydon council in 1988 as a gardener. In 1993 the council granted her a tenancy of a flat in a public park "for the better performance of her duties". As her landlord was also her employer, she had no security of tenure.

In 1994 park maintenance was privatised and Ms O'Byrne became employed by the new private company. The effect was that she became the council's secure tenant of the flat. In 1996 she claimed the right to buy. The council admitted that right but said that, because the park was in the London green belt, the flat could not be sold without the consent of the secretary of state. An inspector conducted a local inquiry and recommended that consent be refused. The secretary of state accepted that recommendation. Ms O'Byrne sought a judicial review. The House of Lords decided that the right to buy was not subject to the green belt laws. Ms O'Byrne did not need the secretary of state's consent. She was entitled to buy her flat.