The former Top Gear presenter, 66, took over running the Oxfordshire pub in 2024, with its role in his Prime Video series bringing tourists to the establishment and local area.
Clarkson explained that he'd been offered a large amount of a material called hardcore that he could use to create a hard-surfaced area for his pub car park.
Jeremy Clarkson pictured at his pub in 2024
Ben Birchall/PA Wire
"I was keen to get cracking for two reasons: firstly, it was a limited-time offer and, secondly, I wanted it in place before the winter rains turned the field into a mud bath," he wrote. "Urgency, however, is not a word that’s fully understood by local authorities."
So I’m sitting here today, with the rain falling, and we can’t get permission. We’ve rung. We’ve begged. We’ve pleaded. We’ve explained that if we don’t do the work now we will lose the hardcore and, all winter, our customers will be dragging tons of mud onto the roads. And all we get back is silence."
Clarkson said that he was having "similar problems" with his farm shop, adding: "Nearly 300 people are employed by my various enterprises these days. And all of them want to know if their jobs are secure.
"So too do the owners of all the cafés, antique shops and guesthouses in the area who rely on Diddly Squat’s popularity for much of their business. And all we can ever tell them is: 'We don’t know.'"
Jeremy Clarkson’s Diddly Squat farm shop
PA
Reflecting on the situation, Clarkson wrote: "It’s strange that nearly all of the buildings that are listed as important and worthy of preservation in this country were built before planning permission came along in 1948. And almost all of the ones that came afterwards aren’t.
"If it got the nod from the local council, it’s rubbish and you can do what you like with it. If it didn’t, you aren’t even allowed to change a lightbulb."
It was back in late 2021 that Clarkson first clashed with the council over his plans to convert one of his barns into a restaurant.
Jeremy Clarkson on stage during the Conservative Party conference (Jacob King/PA)
PA Wire
The former Grand Tour presenter admitted that visitors had “swamped” the village since Clarkson's Farm had grown in popularity, but said it led to increased trade for local businesses.
But months later, planning officers said that converting a lambing shed into a restaurant would be out of keeping with the Cotswolds Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty.
Reflecting on this moment in his new column, Clarkson wrote: "When my restaurant plan was being discussed, one of [the councillors] said he objected because of light pollution. Even though it would shut at 4pm. He didn’t care about the jobs that would be created, because in his mind, Saturn is more important."