NFU lobbying secures coastal access rights of appeal success

Lobbying by the NFU has seen a welcome U-turn from Government on the right to appeal procedure for farmers affected by the proposed development of a coastal access path around the country.

News that the Government has listened to concerns raised by direct lobbying from the NFU and other like-minded organisations, has come following the recent publication of the Government’s tabled amendments for the coastal access provisions within the Marine & Coastal Access Bill. These amendments to the Bill, which will be debated at Report Stage in the House of Lords today, Monday, will provide farmers and landowners with a right to appeal on the position and management of the coastal route and its associated open access land which could affect their land and business.

NFU Deputy President Meurig Raymond said: "This amendment for an objection procedure is just one of many improvements in the coastal access proposals that has been fought for and won over the course of the last year by the NFU.

"The proposal for the objection procedure marks a substantial change of heart by the Government. It will give farmers and growers the right to object to any adverse changes to their business brought about by the proposals for the coastal path and will make the whole process fairer. Whilst clarification is needed on a few remaining details regarding how this objection procedure will operate in practice, it will make a significant difference to the acceptability of the proposals for coastal access to our members.

"Other positive developments in the coastal access proposals as a result of NFU lobbying include Natural England walking the course of the path with farmers and other landowners before any alignments to the coastal route are implemented. This should help to resolve any land management conflicts at the outset and is something we have argued for from the very beginning.

"However, mapping of the "spreading room" remains a sticking point for the NFU. Although a Government-proposed amendment to the Bill means that farmers and growers will now have a right to request a map to show where the spreading room lies, the decision on whether to produce a map in the first place, as opposed to simply relying on a textual description, will still lie with Natural England, which has the job of establishing the coastal route. Therefore, we will continue to push for further improvements to the Bill to protect our members."