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Scottish Access
So, what has changed in Scotland?
The law of access has changed in Scotland. Most paddlers across the UK probably know that already because it has been widely reported; but what is the significance of the change and what does it mean for paddlers?
The Scottish Canoe Association Access and Environment Officer Mike Dales explains the new access arrangements.
Like walking and climbing, canoeing has not just been invented and these activities have not just been introduced to Scotland in the last few years, so on one level the new access laws are just changing the legal status of our existing activities. What we once did by a customary right that some people would have disputed, we now do by statutory right as passed by the Scottish Parliament.
Whilst the previous laws relating to access were outdated and originally aimed at addressing other issues, the Land Reform (Scotland) Act 2003 is a modern piece of legislation aimed at allowing people the freedom to take non-motorised access onto land and inland water.
The reason for the gap between the law being passed in 2003 and enacted in 2005 was because a requirement of the Act was for a Code of responsible behaviour to be in place before the new statutory rights came into effect. After the Act was passed the Scottish Outdoor Access Code was prepared, then consulted on and eventually passed by Parliament in the summer of 2004, and the new access arrangements were then introduced on 9th February 2005. See the box at the end of this article for the three key principles of the Scottish Outdoor Access Code.
The combination of the Act and the Code is intended to create an emphasis on two-way responsibility that is meant to place expectations on those who own and manage land as well as those who take their recreation in the countryside. Whilst canoeists and other recreational visitors are expected to exercise their access rights responsibly, land managers are expected to manage their land and water responsibly in relation to access rights. A great deal of effort is currently going into raising the profile of the new access arrangements and to communicate the responsibility message to the relevant constituencies.
This is not an overnight process, and it will not be a big surprise to hear that we still have access problems in Scotland, as well as litter, dog fouling, wildlife crime and all the other problems that occur in the countryside. We do, however, have modern access laws that recognise the importance of outdoor recreation to our health and economy, which place an emphasis on trusting people to take their own responsible decisions, and can be used to improve all our lives over the coming years. The new access arrangements are designed to put the people of Scotland back in touch with the outdoors and to contribute to improving the health of the nation. They are also aimed at providing a more easily understood system for those who visit Scotland from the rest of the UK and rest of the world.
Since devolution Scotland has increasingly looked to the Scandinavian countries for fresh ideas, and this has been a part of seeing ourselves as a northern European nation. Our access laws reflect this in that the model we have followed most closely is that of Norway, where their Allemannsretten laws provide an easy to understand system that is easily understood by overseas visitors, whilst being popular with Norwegian recreationalists and land managers. Norway has had its legislation for fifty years, whereas Scotland its for just over four. So, if ours has not delivered everything it should have done, or might have done, in the first four years it is worth keeping the Norwegian experience in mind. If our legislation leads to constant improvements that deliver a good working access system in fifty years time then we have at least made the first positive movements in the right direction.
It would be fair to say that when we go paddling we want to get away from having to worry about boring things like Parliamentary legislation, but it is surely better that we have a set of rights and take some time to understand them, than to not have any rights and spend our time campaigning for some legal recognition for our activity. The Scottish system is based on a simple maxim that there is a presumption in favour of access. Because this is an easy to understand concept it should therefore be easy to teach. If a legal system is hard to understand it will be hard to teach and those responsible for teaching and instructing will be reluctant to broach the subject with the people they introduce to the outdoors. That was certainly my experience in the 1980s when I worked in Outdoor Education Centres and went out of my way to avoid raising the issue of access. Move forward to the 21st century in Scotland and we now have a system that should be easy to teach and this should encourage teachers and instructors to have the confidence to pass on the message, and in this case the message is about understanding and balancing our rights and responsibilities.
As well as looking to those in the various branches of the educational sector to convey the message, recreational bodies like the Scottish Canoe Association are condensing the information in the Act and Code and producing leaflets that in turn encourage readers to visit websites that contain lots of information on access in Scotland. The Scottish Canoe Association has published its Paddlers Access Code on an A4 leaflet. An electronic version of this Code can be found by visiting our website at www.canoescotland.com and clicking on Access & Environment and then going to Responsible Access then Paddlers Access Code. A code like this can be read, but maybe not absorbed in about 10 minutes; but with all the web links to pages on our site, as well as external sites, we are encouraging paddlers to spend at least an hour reading into the subject and trying to absorb the information that we have on our site.
One of the pages on our own site is an Online Access Incident Report Form. If paddlers talk about their access incidents in the pub or recount them on web forums it may get the issue off their chests, but it doesnt get the Scottish Canoe Association onto their case and investigating the problem with a view to resolving it. We would therefore encourage any paddler who has a confrontation with someone, or who sees what they consider to be an illegal sign, to complete an online form and submit it to us.
The fact that we still have an Access Incident Form is evidence that we still have incidents. Anyone visiting Scotland and thinking that we no longer have access problems will be disappointed. There are times when we have to assert our rights, but we always need to remember our responsibilities. The best way to act responsibly and assert your rights is to familiarise yourself with the way our new access arrangements work. The easiest way to do that is to visit our website, read our Code, follow the links and discuss what you learn with your paddling friends.
The Scottish access arrangements are bringing a number of benefits to Scottish paddlers. A couple of ways that are worthy of mention are that the Act requires any byelaws that restricted access in the past have to be reviewed within two years of the enactment of the statutory rights. This has resulted in a number of lochs and reservoirs that had restrictive byelaws being opened up for canoeing. Secondly, the Scottish Government now see us as legitimate users of Scotlands waterways and include us in any relevant working groups. This has meant that we are now at the centre of the debate about keeping salmon parasites out of Scottish rivers. The Scottish Canoe Association is now involved in vital work on this important issue, but the key to being invited to sit on the working group came from having an equal right with the other interests around the table to be on the rivers. Look up Waterborne Diseases on our website.
Wherever you are from, if you are planning to paddle in Scotland please take the time to visit the Scottish Canoe Association website and familiarise yourself with the information we are providing on Scotlands access system. An understanding of our new access arrangements will enable you to paddle responsibly and help you to benefit from the change in our access laws.
The Scottish Outdoor Access Code is based on three key principles and these apply equally to the public and land managers.
1. Respect the interests of other people: Acting with courtesy, consideration and awareness is very important. If you are exercising access rights, make sure that you respect the privacy, safety and livelihoods of those living or working in the outdoors, and the needs of other people enjoying the outdoors. If you are a land manager, respect peoples use of the outdoors and their need for a safe and enjoyable visit.
2. Care for the Environment: If you are exercising access rights, look after the places you visit and enjoy, and leave the land as you find it. If you are a land manager, help maintain the natural and cultural features which make the outdoors attractive to visit and enjoy.
3. Take responsibility for your own actions: If you are exercising access rights, remember that the outdoors cannot be made risk-free and act with care at all times for your own safety and that of others. If you are a land manager, act with care at all times for peoples safety.
