IF AT first you don’t succeed, try, try and try again.

That is clearly the strategy being adopted by wealthy tycoon Jim Ratcliffe, who has launched yet another attempt to build a multi-million-pound mansion on a beach in the New Forest.

Just months after seeing a previous proposal thrown out, the billionaire businessman is making another bid for planning permission.

Mr Ratcliffe, founder of the INEOS chemical company, wants to bulldoze a seaside bungalow at Thorns Beach, near Beaulieu, and transform the site.

His initial application was rejected by the National Park Authority (NPA) in 2012 and was subsequently turned down on appeal.

A revised scheme was refused by the NPA last year, with members again criticising the size and design of the proposed development.

Now Mr Ratcliffe, 62, is hoping it will be a case of third time lucky.

He has gone back to the drawing board and altered the design yet again in a bid to overcome criticism of his first two proposals.

The latest application says the new house will have only a minimal visual impact on its surroundings while at the same time providing an “architecturally stimulating” environment.

‘Architecturally stimulating’ It adds: “The master bedroom has been relocated to the top floor of the house, more befitting of a fine home.

“The top floor no longer contains any receptions and the ’look-out’ has been removed, thereby removing fears of light pollution.

“The south-eastern wing has been removed and replaced with a free-standing ‘pavilion’, which contains only guest accommodation and has a lower roof height.

“The ground floor of the house is now smaller.

“The seaward-facing chimneys have been lowered and amended in design to remove their prominence.”

Mr Ratcliffe’s previous attempts to gain planning permission split public opinion and the latest application is expected to produce another flood of letters both for and against.

Mary Montagu-Scott, daughter of Lord Montagu of Beaulieu, was among the objectors who gave evidence at a public inquiry into the first proposal.

She said Mr Ratcliffe should purchase an existing property elsewhere rather than spoil an environmentally-sensitive part of the coastline.

“A very large house on a relatively small site would change the character of the area. If the applicant wants a large house, he should buy a large house,” she said.

The second application was opposed by the New Forest Association and the Solent Protection Society but also sparked 16 letters of support.

One of the people who backed the proposal said the “carefully designed” house would be sympathetic to the landscape and would enhance the area.

Mr Ratcliffe, one of Britain’s richest men, was reported to be worth £1 billion last year.

His fortune includes his stake in INEOS, which he founded in 1998. The company moved to Switzerland in 2010 but still has offices in Lyndhurst.