£50 million coastal access bill a waste of money - CLA  

The proposals, contained in the Marine and Coastal Access Bill, will start their final passage through Parliament today (Monday, October 26).

But the CLA have condemned parts of the Bill as a waste of time and money. The rural experts said they could deliver a better outcome for walkers with less than £1 million.

John Mortimer, CLA South West director, urged MPs to scrap the coastal access section of the Bill.

“We are in the middle of the deepest and longest recession since records began – how can the Government seriously justify spending £50 million on what is no more than political posturing when the sums prove they can deliver a better outcome for less than £1 million?” he said.

The CLA say access to the coast – where it doesn’t already exist – can be better provided using existing legislation such as the Highways Act.

The Association added that the Government’s own figures proved that over 84 per cent of the English coast already had access and that a further eight per cent is genuinely inaccessible.

“Creating a new public footpath using the Highways Act costs about £2 per metre which means that providing access to the eight per cent of the coast where access doesn’t exist could be done for around £700,000.

“The grandiose scheme the Government is proposing simply isn’t necessary - it could better and more cheaply meet the needs of the public by using existing legislation,” said Mr Mortimer.

Rather than a ‘round-England route’ Mr Mortimer added that walkers wanted better signs, better maintenance, better waymarking, better facilities, cheaper car parking and improved bus or public transport services to get to the coast.

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