Dear Roamers,
Autumn is a time for reflection. And, with the recent departure of the Environment Secretary, Thérèse Coffey, we find ourselves reflecting on the government’s record on access to date.
First, a heartfelt apology to Thérèse. Last month at the Conservative Party Conference she told an audience of the British Association for Shooting and Conservation that she was “frankly fed up with the Right to Roam campaign” and that “the only things that have rights to roam are farmers, their pigs and cattle.” She was so happy with the killer line, she repeated it twice: dropping it into her main conference speech.
So this weekend our London group made it up to her by organising a mass trespass of the Arundel Estate in West Sussex, owned by the Duke of Norfolk. Dressed as livestock - just as Thérèse requested - attendees peacefully wandered off-piste through the venerable deer park and sang Happy Birthday to the departing Secretary of State.
But it’s no wonder she’s fed up, having achieved absolutely nothing on access - or any other part of her brief - since taking office. After the pandemic, the government promised us a “quantum shift” in access to the outdoors and nature. Then they shelved the Agnew Review which was supposed to deliver it. Belatedly, they published their response to the Glover Review, with its recommendation that ‘fair access is given to all’. The response was meaningless drivel. The ‘2021 England Trees Action Plan’ promised the expansion of access to woodland. It has unsurprisingly failed to materialise. Meanwhile Coffey’s own big idea: a promise that everyone will live ‘a fifteen minute walk from green space or water’ is so unlikely to actually happen it’s the policy equivalent of an acid trip.
So, we’re sorry you’re fed up Thérèse. We are too.
Policy for People, Not Major Landowners
With this government having achieved zilch on access, a lot is riding on the opposition parties stepping up. But the Labour Party appears to be reconsidering its access policy. It has recently rowed back on comments made by former shadow environment minister, Alex Sobel, in the House of Commons, that “Labour’s approach, like in Scotland, will be that Labour’s right to roam will offer access to high-quality green and blue space in the rest of Britain. We will replace the default of exclusion with a default of access.” Now reports say the party will look to extend the Countryside and Rights of Way Act instead.
This is still a welcome commitment. But we think it’s the wrong approach: extending CRoW will be harder to communicate, prove more complicated, cost more money, and achieve less than simply adapting the Scottish approach – which created a default right of access and worked backwards to identify sensible exceptions. Public money should go towards supporting access infrastructure and educational resources which help people understand their rights and exercise them responsibly, not drawn-out mapping exercises conducted solely to appease the landowning lobby. The result will be better for everyone.
We are currently putting together the arguments, statistics and mapping results which support that view and will redouble our efforts to make sure they’re heard. Nothing is set in stone. And over the next year, with a general election looming, we want to show all parties that expanding our right to roam is both a big vote-winner and politically essential.
Help Us Reach 500 Subscribers
Want to help support that work? We’ve estimated we need 500 new subscribers to make the campaign sustainable over the coming year and ensure we can focus on the stuff that matters, rather than running around raising funds.
So a huge thank you to those who have already donated: we’ve now reached 20% of our target!
We know times are tight but if you are able to contribute, click the donate button below, or follow the link here.
Autumn blessings to you, and all nomadic livestock.
Jon
& the Right to Roam Team
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