Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the rights of walkers in England in accessing the countryside.

The Government recognises the importance of ensuring that walkers have the right to access the countryside, and there is legislation and mapping tools in place to support this. The Highways Act 1980 and The Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 provide for the creation of new public rights of way, recording of existing rights of way and changes to the network. Similarly, the Countryside and Rights of Way Act 2000 created open access land where walkers can roam freely.

The Government has developed Open Access maps, which allow walkers to identify areas of open access land, as well as Rights of Way Improvement Plans (ROWIPs) which require local authorities to assess and improve the condition of existing rights of way. The government has also provided funding through the Revenue Support Grant (RSG) to support local authorities in delivering their ROWIPs.