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Country Land and Business Association

Public Access

Public Access

The CLA Access Team proactively and positively engages in the debate on the wide spectrum of public access issues.  The CLA lobbies on behalf of the membership raising the concerns of landowners and rural business to all levels of government in England and Wales.  The CLA recognises the growing pressures of increased public access and encourages the use of voluntary measures to achive this. 

The CLA also offers an advisory service for members on public access issues, including Public Rights of Way, Countryside and Rights of Way Act 2000, the proposed right of coastal access, Cross Compliance (GAEC8), voluntary access arrangements e.g. permissive paths, Higher Level Environmental Stewardship Scheme and Toll Rides.

Our lobbying efforts are based on the experience of the membership; if you have an issue or concern then contact a member of the CLA Access Team as we are always looking for case studies to illustrate good, or bad practice.

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Latest access news - 25 September 2008
CLA slates Government’s ‘unjust’ refusal to accept parliamentary committees’ coastal access views
The CLA today (25 September) slammed the Government's refusal to accept two parliamentary committees' views on coastal access – denying landowners the chance to appeal against the new right of public access being imposed over their land.
The Government rejected the Efra Committee's finding that the "lack of a formal appeal process is a fundamental weakness" of the draft Marine Bill. An appeals system had also been recommended by the Joint House of Lords and House of Commons Committee.
 
However, today the Government declared it did not feel an "appeals process would be appropriate".
 
CLA President Henry Aubrey-Fletcher said: "It is absurd, unjust and unfair that the Government has rejected an independent right of appeal on the spurious grounds that the cost of all the appeals against the right to roam introduced in 2000 was disproportionably 'lengthy and expensive'.
 
"In fact, two thirds of all appeals against the right to roam were successful. It is ridiculous the Government now seems to assume its system is infallible."
 
The CLA President said: "Despite refusing a right of appeal, the Government also ruled out compensation for rural businesses and landowners who could prove they had lost out financially because of the new right of coastal access.
 
"It is hard to equate this approach with a Government that repeatedly claims 'fairness' is its calling card. There is precious little in the way of concessions in its response to pre-legislative scrutiny and public consultation to the draft Marine Bill."
 
Henry Aubrey-Fletcher added: "It is a great shame that the Minister has not heeded the advice of two parliamentary committees and the CLA among many others. The draft Marine Bill is little improved by the few concessions on coastal access that he has allowed to go through.
 
"By ignoring the majority of what the two committees have recommended with the CLA's backing, the Minister has missed a golden opportunity to correct basic inequalities on the coastal access proposals in the Bill. At the very beginning of this process, the Minister was keen to involve landowners, saying he wanted to ensure they were not adversely affected. It appears he has failed to do this."
30 July 2008
Double victory for CLA on coastal access
The CLA has today welcomed a double victory for a right to appeal for coastal access being backed by both the Joint Committee and the Efra Committee.
Both the Joint Committee report, published tomorrow, and the Efra report, released last week support CLA concerns for a fully independent appeals process for those who will be negatively affected by the Draft Marine Bill on access to the coast.
 
CLA Deputy President William Worsley said: "The CLA has lobbied hard on the issue of coastal access and will continue to do so to protect those with land, property and businesses along the English coast. We are encouraged by the support shown by the some of the recommendations made by the Joint Committee and hope that the Government will listen to this advice. Although the joint committees recommendations still leaves uncertainty around "private gardens and parks"
 
The CLA Deputy President said: "By failing to categorically exclude parks and gardens from this legislation those living on the coast will still worry that the Bill could affect them adversely."
 
The CLA welcomes The Joint Committee's statement on the need for clarity on the issue of compensation for proven loss.
 
The CLA Deputy President said: "The CLA is adamant that compensation for proven loss is absolutely essential to avoid natural injustice."
 
"Our message to Government is that both committees have shown that there is still a lot of work needed on this draft Bill to ensure the private property rights of those who live and have businesses on the coast are protected."
 
22 July 2008
 
Efra Committee backs the CLA’s demands on flawed coastal access proposals    
 
The House of Commons’ Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Select Committee has backed the CLA’s demands on the flawed coastal access plans in the draft Marine Bill.
 
In a report entitled Draft Marine Bill: Coastal Access Provisions, the Efra Committee recommended there should be:
 
  • An appeal process for individuals and businesses on whose land the new access would be imposed,
  • Compensation for proven loss by individuals and businesses when the new rights come into force, and
  • A commitment to look at the issue of animal liability which would come as a relief to owners of cattle, horses and other livestock.
 
CLA Deputy President William Worsley said: “This is great news and exactly what the CLA has been calling for - it shows that the MPs on the Efra Select Committee have listened to all our representations and supported our views on these key issues.
 
“Everyone with an interest in coastal access has made a huge investment in terms of time and cost in submitting evidence to this House of Commons Committee. This process is a key stage of pre-legislative scrutiny and should not be ignored.
 
“The CLA urges the Government to implement in full all the recommendations that the CLA and Efra Committee support to ensure the draft Marine Bill respects the rights of land and property owners.”
 
Prior to publication of the report, the CLA took the Efra Committee on a fact-finding visit to coastal Essex where the members were shown the potential impacts on a great number of businesses and individuals of granting coastal access around Hamford Water.
 
Efra Committee also supported the CLA’s position on the control of dogs. The Efra report said “close control is not obvious or well-defined so we urge authorities to do more to clarify the term by providing with specific examples. . . “ The report also backed dogs being kept off vegetable plots and salad crops.
 
 07/12/07

 

 CLA will Tell Minister that Coastal Corridor is Costly and Contentious 

Current Natural England proposals for providing a route for walkers all the way round the English coast will trample over the rights of private property owners and have a potentially disastrous impact on some coastal based businesses.

That's the no-nonsense message Henry Aubrey-Fletcher, President of the CLA, the rural economy experts, will be taking to the minister responsible for coastal access, Jonathan Shaw, next week.
 
The CLA is concerned that the current favourite proposal is to provide an access corridor around the whole coast – but the Association does not believe that the true consequences of this have been fully understood.
 
"Natural England is proposing to take private land – not just farmland, but any land – without compensation. That flies in the face of every other similar aspect of English law and amounts, in other words, to the nationalisation of land. We have a very serious problem with this idea of compulsory acquisition of rights without compensation - we say it is simply not acceptable to take a privately owned asset for the public good without paying for it."
 
The CLA President said that he would tell the minister that landowners were not trying to prevent people visiting the coast. CLA members, he said, understood the importance of coastal access in both economic and social terms, but the Association's view has always been that where there are difficulties, these should be resolved at a local level using local solutions.
 
"Assuming the current proposals come in on budget, coastal property owners will have provided this access free, but delivery will still cost the tax payer £50million and then leave local authorities with the bill for maintaining it. We say that the need or demand for new legislation simply does not exist – there is already plenty of law available to provide access where there currently is none."
 
The CLA will also highlight the potential problems for coastal farms where stocking and cropping regimes may have to be altered and for many coastal businesses which will also have to be reorganised in order accommodate these proposals.
 
"We can provide clear examples of the difficulties this proposal will cause coastal businesses and of the solutions private landowners can offer. We hope to persuade the minister that there genuinely is a better ways to approach this issue," he said. 
 
» September 27th, 2007 «
A Case of 'Smoke and Mirrors': Government Has Shown No Regard For Coastal Consultation

 Environment Secretary, Hilary Benn's announcement at the Labour Party Conference today (Thursday 27 September) that the Government plans to legislate for a statutory right of access around the English coast has paid more attention to political dogma than to the future of the individuals and businesses who will be affected – according to the CLA, the rural economy experts.

"Who said spin was dead  It appears as though the timetable of the Labour Party Conference is more important than the timetable for a public consultation process," said David Fursdon, president of the CLA. 

"Have Hilary Benn and his colleagues at Defra even read the responses of the 753 individuals and organisations who have taken the time to respond to Defra's Coastal Access consultation  It appears that the Secretary of State has already made up his mind which makes the consultation process a complete farce. 

"No one's disputing that we need access to the coast. The question is identifying where there are problem areas and dealing with these rather than taking a broad brush approach otherwise this is like taking a sledgehammer to crack a nut.   

"Access for all might be a Labour value but I thought that this Labour Government was all about protecting the rights of individuals such as those businesses, farmers and landowners who stand to lose income and capital value as a result of this dogma. 

"We dread to think how much an approach like this will cost unless of course the Government intends to ride roughshod over these legitimate business interests and refuse to pay them compensation that they would otherwise be due.  An uninterrputed path around the English coast is not an easy task.  Areas that are currently inaccessible are likely to be so for a good reason.     

"This is clearly a case of 'smoke and mirrors'", concluded David Fursdon.

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Contacts

Sarah Slade MRICS – National Access Adviser

A Chartered Surveyor with responsibility for CLA policy on public rights of way and access issues. Provides advice to members on issues arising from public access to the countryside.

Phone: 01769 580 080
FAX: 01769 580 080
Email sarah.slade@cla.org.uk

Christopher Price – Chief Legal Adviser

A solicitor, advises on national and European public and administrative law issues including human rights, judicial review, planning and compulsory purchase, rating and council tax and various regulatory matters such as housing, food safety, animal welfare and firearms.

Phone: 020 7460 7953
FAX: 020 7235 4696
Email christopher.price@cla.org.uk

Sarah Andrews MRICS FAAV – Regional Surveyor - Wales

Covers Carmarthenshire, Pembrokeshire, Ceredigion, Glamorgan, Monmouthshire, Powys (Brecon & Radnor)

Phone: 01267 238 202
Email sarah.andrews@cla.org.uk

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WALES AUDIT OFFICE STUDY into 'Public Access to the Countryside' was published by Wales Audit Office on 2nd November 2006.