Current progress

Scottish Outdoor Access Code
consultation period
Advice on responding
MCofS consultation response (pdf)
latest SOAC draft

Previous events

The Land Reform (Scotland) Bill
first impressions
MCofS evidence
Supplementary Evidence
Reaction to Committee Report
Parliament Now Fully Engaged in Access Debate
Threat to night time access
Confusion on Outdoor Education

Is Trespass Illegal in Scotland ?
Commercial Activities in the Hills?
Needs of the people, not just Skibo's guests
Access to Balmoral Estate secured

Passing of Bill welcomed
What happens now?
Royal Assent given to Act

Draft Land Reform (Scotland) Bill -
Consultation Paper
MCofS response
Petition taken to Parliament

The passage of the Land Reform (Scotland) Bill through the Scottish Parliament came to an end on 23rd January 2003 with the completion of the stage 3 debate and the formulation of the final amended version. It has now become an Act and received Royal Assent. This doesn't activate all the new rights immediately, it triggers a three-month consultation into the content of the draft Scottish Outdoor Access Code. This Code is of significant importance to all those who take their recreation in the outdoors and the MCofS is urging all hillwalkers and climbers to obtain the consultation document and make a written response.

The concept behind the Code is that it will provide guidance for recreationalists, land managers and government agencies on acting responsibly, and for exercising the rights contained in the new Act in a responsible manner. The Code will issue guidance alongside the laws contained in the Land Reform Act, in a similar manner to the way in which the Highway Code gives guidance alongside the Road Traffic Act.

Throughout the process of working up new Scottish access legislation, the Code has been developed in parallel with the successive versions of the draft Bill, and the development of the Code has provided an alternative place for certain measures to sit, which clearly did not belong in the Bill. The Bill has been the place for black and white issues where you must do this, or not do that; but the Code has been the natural place for other "grey" aspects where it is felt that under one set of circumstances you should do this, but under different circumstances you should maybe do the opposite. Examples of areas that the Code will address include the control of dogs, following a route through livestock, passing through fields and the extra responsibilities on those in charge of groups.

When the Code is eventually introduced there is likely to be a high profile educational drive to get various messages across to the different target audiences. Parts of this drive will be aimed at dog owners, whilst other aspects will be aimed at addressing the new responsibilities on land managers to accommodate the public.

In terms of the messages to hillwalkers and climbers, the intention is meant to be that our rights should be easier to understand and explain, and our responsibilities should be more clearly stated and easier to discover. The inevitable debate somewhere down the line, however, is just what do we mean by the word "responsible". Who decides what is to be considered responsible? The forthcoming consultation is a crucial part of that debate, and the outcome of the consultation responses will help to shape the content of the Code. That is why this stage in the long process to change the legislation and agree a Code is so important.

The expected timetable for the consideration and implementation of the Code is currently as follows, although delays in the process have happened in the past and could happen again. Therefore, please treat this as a very rough guide.
2003
January	Stage 3 debate in Scottish Parliament.
January to March	SNH prepare current version of draft Code for consultation.
late March	12 week consultation begins.
30th June	Consultation ends.
July to September	SNH assess responses and revise the Code.
September	SNH submit new Code to the Scottish Executive.
November	SNH submit new Code to the Scottish Parliament.
2004
January	Scottish Parliament vote to approve the Code.
Easter?	The Code and some of the new rights come into effect.

As you can see from this possible timetable, there is likely to be an interim period of about a year between the legislation being passed and the Code being finalised. This is an inevitable consequence of the process, and will be a time for local authorities to adjust to a new system and prepare for a different way of working. From the point of view of hillwalkers and climbers, the way we take access in this interim period is unlikely to be very different to what happens at the moment. Whatever the basis of the common law right of access that we currently take, that is unlikely to change over the coming year, or beyond that when the new Act is fully operational. Horse riders, cyclists and canoeists may have to wait until 2004 to gain extra rights, and the MCofS is unsure about the timing of when local authorities will be able to exert new influence over old signs that aim to deter, confuse and mislead the walking public, but the actual process of going for a walk or a climb shouldn't actually change all that much. The main thing is to be aware of your rights and responsibilities. To this end we will continue to give updated news and advice on this website as the process moves forward.

The Scottish Parliamentary elections take place on May 1st 2003, and a government agency cannot launch a major consultation within the month prior to the election, so if the consultation doesn't start in March, then it will not happen until May, and a delay of six-weeks or so could have a knock-on effect on the above schedule.

This website will have a link to the consultation document when it is eventually released. The current draft version of the Code can already be found on the SNH website.