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We slate government for lack of action on public access

July 11, 2023

‘The Open Spaces Society is often critical of the government’s approach to open access opportunities.’  So said our chairman, Phil Wadey, in his keynote speech our AGM on 6 July. He continued: ‘Back in January, the government announced an environmental improvement plan for England which aspired to having every household no more than “a 15-minutes’…

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Environment minister breaks government pledge to save historic paths

March 22, 2023

We have condemned the Environment Secretary’s decision to break the government’s undertaking last year to ditch the 2026 deadline for recording lost paths in England.  Thérèse Coffey has now decided not to revoke the deadline but to extend it for five years. The deadline means that on 1 January 2031, public rights over thousands of…

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Public money for what?

January 27, 2023

We are deeply dismayed by the Prospectus, published on 26 January by the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra), which sets out the various actions for which farmers and land managers will be paid under the Environmental Land Management Scheme (ELMS). Defra claims that there is something there for everyone, but sadly, this…

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OEP assessment: government falling short

January 26, 2023

The Office for Environmental Protection (OEP) has published its assessment of government progress on the 25-year environment plan, concluding that this progress has fallen short of expectations. There have been some improvements in air quality in recent years and people’s engagement with nature is also up markedly. Although welcome these are likely to in part…

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