I am not saying the fan regulates the temperature the fans will only come on when there is a need to do so, I.E insufficent airflow due to sitting in traffic.

My exact quote was "The two stage fan system on the Escort is to hold the temps high for emissions reasons" which it has nothing to do with the air con either like you say, the exact same can be backed up with quote from Mike Rainbird which reflects what I said below:

"Completely normal for a standard two-speed switch on an Escort. For emission's purposes, the fans try and hold the engine as close to 100°C as possible in traffic. The first (slow speed) comes on at around 93° and the second (high speed) at around 99°."

Martin