Land access fears in Wales

Kate Gatacre

September 27, 2013

The Countryside Alliance (CA), supported by the Angling Trust (AT), has called on fieldsports enthusiasts in Wales to discuss the Welsh Government’s review on increasing access to land and water. The request was issued at the Royal Welsh Showground on 15 September by a panel that included Rachel Evans, director for Wales at the CA, Mark Lloyd, chief executive of the AT, and Paul Stafford and Malcolm Adams of the Dee Partnership.

There have been concerns that the Welsh Government is considering adopting the Scottish model for access to land since 22 July, when the Welsh minister for culture and sport, John Griffiths, announced a review of legislation that would increase rural access, making several references to Scotland. Shooting and conservation interests are at risk if a Scottish model is adopted, and CA Wales said that some of those attending the Welsh Government’s workshops on rural access displayed a clear lack of understanding of the countryside, and of the fact that, in many cases, rules and regulations existed to protect habitats and wildlife.

The rest of this article appears in the 25th September issue of Shooting Times.