Tim Bonner: Challenging urban mindsets

Many of you will have been pleased that the seemingly relentless run of hot, sunny weather this Spring has broken. Of course, grass and crops desperately need rain, but in many parts of the countryside there is also a hope that lower temperatures and some precipitation will also reduce the number of people heading into the countryside, and specifically those whose behaviour is unacceptable. There are a small minority who seem unable, or unwilling, to act in a responsible manner and littering, livestock worrying, damage to wildlife and wildfires have created a tense and unpleasant atmosphere in many areas.

As our President, Baroness Mallalieu, has pointed out in a widely reported piece, at least some of the difficulties result from Government policy in England which released people from lockdown into the countryside - and it is entirely understandable that they wanted to escape to rural areas - but neither encouraged local authorities to open car parks and other facilities, or allowed local businesses to benefit from the influx of visitors. Unfortunately, this betrays the subconscious metropolitan mindset of government which tends to address urban issues and then deal with whatever consequences there are for the countryside.

This is certainly not a new problem and it is definitely not restricted to England. In fact, the Welsh and Scottish governments have trumped England with blatantly discriminatory guidance as they start to lift their COVID-19 restrictions. Both limit travel for leisure purposes to five miles from the home, which might be fine if you live in Cardiff or Glasgow and can access friends, golf clubs, garden centres and all the other facilities you want to access within a five-mile radius. Both countries, however, have significant rural populations for whom a five-mile drive might not get them to their nearest neighbourhood, let alone the nearest town. When challenged, both governments have backtracked and claimed this is "just" guidance, but why issue guidance that is so obviously inimical to a part of your population unless you just don't consider the needs and challenges of those communities?

Our colleagues in Scotland and Wales will continue to challenge their administrations to assist rural communities and, in Scotland in particular, that will include urging the government to consider the value of shooting and recreational stalking to the rural economy and allow it to restart as soon as possible. Deer management groups are predicting millions of pounds of lost income if guests cannot be taken stalking and worryingly, many estates are suggesting that continuing restrictions would mean reducing the number of deer culled. It is vital both for the rural economy and the environment that sporting estates can reopen and welcome visitors as soon as possible. The Scottish Countryside Alliance fully recognises the difficult line the Scottish government treads between controlling the virus and minimising the impact of lockdown. All we ask in Scotland - and also in Wales and England - is that Ministers consider the interests of the countryside and its communities on an equal footing to those in towns and cities.