Archive
End of HLS Payments for Public Access
- Details
- Written by James Paxman
A recent letter from Richard Benyon, Minister for Natural Environment and Fisheries, confirms that payments for permissive public access made under HLS agreements are to end.
Defra had been asked to look again at this issue to see if it would be possible to continue to fund permissive access from within HLS funding. However, as the minister explains, such access payments are ineligible for co-funding from EU sources and therefore must be 100% funded by the exchequer.
The payments had previously covered the creation and maintenance of footpaths, bridleways and special surface paths for less mobile users; upgrades to Countryside and Rights of Way (CRoW) Act land; and had assisted with public liability insurance costs.
Well over 3000 miles of the public access network in England and Wales is supported by HLS payments in this fashion (about 3% of the entire network) and will presumably be lost over the next 9 years. Although existing agreements will continue to be funded, the schemes are effectively now closed to new entrants and existing schemes will all reach their end dates by 2020.
Permissive access will therefore increasingly depend on the goodwill of the farming community. Defra will continue to encourage this by providing capital payments for benches, step over stiles and gates and hard standing for cars and less mobile users. Unlike access payments, this type of support is fully match funded by EU funds. Educational visits to farms from school for pupils up to the age of 16 will continue to be eligible for funding under HLS.
For further information about Environmental Stewardship click here
