The debate over ownership of the Downs has come back into the spotlight recently.
It is owned by the Society of Merchant Venturers, an ancient trading organisation in Bristol, which - along with Bristol City Council which owns the other half - sits on the statutory committee that manages The Downs.
Now, more than a century and a half after the Downs Committee was established by a Victorian act of Parliament, pressure group Downs for People has said it is time for the Merchant Venturers to give Clifton Down to the city of Bristol and for their removal from the committee.
