[My apologies, first version of this post yesterday did not take account of latest advice from the Covid-19 Advisory Group. This has been corrected and post also updated to reflect what is going on in North Lanarkshire] This post takes a look at how Public Authorities have been applying the Health Protection (Coronavirus) (Restriction) Regulations…
Tag: Scottish Government
Scottish Government changes to planning processes The Scottish Government has been urging all planning authorities, including our National Parks, to maintain their planning system as a top priority. Planning Authorities are being urged to use all of their discretionary powers backed up by the Coronavirus (Scotland) Act 2020 to keep the planning system going (see…
“And of course given how severely this virus is affecting older people and those with other health vulnerabilities, some form of shielding will almost certainly be required for the foreseeable future” (Nicola Sturgeon on lifting “lockdown” (see here)). In the last few weeks, as a result of the Corona Crisis, Parkswatch’s attention has shifted from…
While arguing in my last post (see here) that Scottish Natural Heritage’s advice on access to farmland during the corona crisis undermines the Scottish Outdoor Access Code and is unduly restrictive, interestingly it contains a link to the quite separate Scottish Government advice on taking dogs outdoors for a walk that is far less restrictive….
On Monday (20th April) the Scottish Parliament met, sitting two metres apart. The session started with the Presiding Officer asked MSPs to take particular care to maintain that distance when arriving and leaving at the Chamber. That same day the First Minister announced a crackdown on workplaces that had been allowed to remain open but…
Because perceptions about the risks of Covid-19 vary widely across the population, I think its important to be clear about my own starting point. I write this as someone who is not scared of catching COVID-19, as the risk to fit 60 year olds is very low, but has no wish to do so, or…
The village of Nethy Bridge prides itself as being the Forest Village, being almost fully surrounded by woodland and forest, much of which is classified as ancient woodland. Yet developer Castle Glen Properties of Aberdeen has submitted a planning application for planning permission in principle to the Cairngorms National Park Authority for the construction of…
Many of you might have missed an interesting article from the P&J dated 19 March (see here). This article revealed that HIE had allocated almost £2million to the Cairngorm Mountain ski centre. Having read this article, I decided to check out what Highland and Islands Enterprise’s currently published funding approvals were. The list of HIE’s…
This post takes a look at the Scottish Government’s increasing drive to restrict when and how people – including staff working for the NHS on the frontline – can leave their homes for their own mental and physical health and how this fits with our access rights and human rights. Shifting “medical” advice When…
I will come to National Parks later, but Dr Catherine Calderwood is no fool. She didn’t get to become to be Scotland’s Chief Medical Officer by not have a clue about how viruses work. Her drive to Fife, her stay overnight in her second home and subsequent resignation tell us, I believe, four things: First…
In the corona panic, the Scottish Government and our Public Authorities have completely lost all sense of reason. It will have serious human and environmental consequences. What the Coronavirus Health Protection Restriction Scotland Regulations (see here), passed last week by the Scottish Government without any parliamentary scrutiny, actually say is that you cannot leave where…
Last week, without anyone noticing, the Scottish Government followed the UK Government and used the Health Protection (Coronavirus) (Restrictions) (Scotland) Regulations to remove our right to protest. What the regulation means is that if health and social care staff or other workers walk out of their workplace to protest against the lack of personal protective…
Ten days ago I, like many others, was prepared to accept that tough measures were needed for a temporary period in order to suppress the COVID 19 to manageable levels. I was concerned, however, that public health was not being given the resources necessary until a vaccine is developed (likely to be another 12 months)…
I was pleased to have this letter published in the Herald today. Its got nothing to do with National Parks but everything to do with what’s happening in them, as this post will explain. Until our governments set up contact tracing and testing like South Korea and China have done, there will be no end…
The corona crisis has swept all before it. What seemed rational just a few days ago is now deemed unacceptable, whether that was the advice issued our by our recreational organisations (see here), the Loch Lomond and Trossachs National Park Authority holding a truncated Board Meeting last Monday (see here) or the measures put in…
The announcement yesterday that Highlands and Islands Enterprise is submitting a Planning Application to repair the Funicular (see here), despite still not knowing what this would cost, was predictable. As far back as September of last year, HIE made it clear that their intention was to repair the Funicular. This was evidenced by Audit Scotland’s…
Forest Drive has miraculously re-opened after my post last week (see here) which revealed that the Loch Lomond and Trossachs National Park Authority had only opened 192 out of the 300 plus camping places it had promised to Scottish Ministers for the start of the camping byelaw season. In permit area Q, for example (see…
On Monday afternoon news emerged that Blairvadach had been saved – for another year – as a result of the deal the Scottish Government did with the Greens last week to get support for their budget. This deal involved more money being allocated to local authorities and, with that cash in hand, the SNP administration…
Recently, Forest and Land Scotland have been flailing trees on Forest Drive in the Trossachs. Flailing is much cheaper than cutting trees manually but is a very destructive practice. It might be acceptable for clearing scrub from roadside verges, but little else. Its impact on hedges, for example, is disastrous, destroying their structure and ecological…
Yesterday saw the start of the new camping byelaw “season” in the Loch Lomond and Trossachs National Park. The LLTNPA has kept very quiet about this, there is no news release, but they were taking bookings for 1st March (see here) so they are operating the byelaws again. As I pointed out in December (see…
I do not think there is anyone who will contest the value of Outdoor activity / residential experiences for helping young people to develop in life, education, health and social relationships. High quality Outdoor Education / residential experiences develop young people for life’s challenges, greater understanding of the natural environment, greater social interaction and make…
Until reading the Report of the Deer Working Group (DWG) to the Scottish Government (see here) and (here), I had not realised that the Scottish Government was dishing out public money to landowners to undertake muirburn for red deer. The payments appear to have been introduced by the Scottish Government in 2015 and then, in…
Anyone who wonders why new legislation is needed to regulate deer numbers in Scotland need only study this photograph, taken in Oct 2018, and then read David Lintern’s fine article from 2017 on Walkhighlands “Bare hill of the Hind” (see here). The Walk Highlands article includes a video of a massive herd of red deer…
On 16th December, just before the “dead” holiday period the Loch Lomond and Trossachs National Park launched a six week consultation on a new Outdoor Recreation Plan (ORP). The consultation closes at 5pm today (see here to respond). Mary Jack, earlier this month, considered the discussion at the Board Meeting prior to the consultation launch,…
The two fine letters speak for themselves. Sadly, there is now widespread misunderstanding about the law on access across Scotland: Camping is one of the activities covered by access rights but but those rights specifically exclude motor vehicles. This slide, appended to the consultation document issued by the Fife Coast and Countryside Trust on Freedom…