| Q. What is a National
Park?
A. There is no universally accepted definition
of what constitutes a National Park. However, in general terms, it
is used to refer to a fairly extensive area of countryside of outstanding
natural and/or cultural heritage. Many countries throughout the world
have a series of National Parks. However, Scotland, unlike England,
is not one of them.
Q. So why is the
Executive going to create National Parks now?
A. At the moment, Scotland has a complex
suite of conservation and natural heritage designations. However,
the existing designations tend to focus on managing one particular feature
of the site and tend to place responsibility for this on a single public
or government body. The creation of National Parks (and National
Park Authorities (NPAs)) would draw together responsibility for managing
a number of different types of natural or cultural heritage interests across
a number of public, government or private sectors.
Q. What does the
Scottish Executive hope to achieve with the creation of National Parks?
A. The main aims of the Executive in the
creation of National Parks are set out in Section 1(3) of the Bill.
They are;
a) to conserve and enhance the natural
and cultural heritage of the area,
b) to promote sustainable use of the natural
resources of the area,
c) to promote understanding and enjoyment
of the special qualities of the area by the public,
d) to promote economic and social development
of the area.
Q. Isn’t the last
aim a little unusual? Is it compatible with the other aims?
A. This was a point which was raised at
length during the consultation process. The aim of promoting economic
and social development of the area is peculiar to Scotland, and has aroused
much controversy. However, there has been broad support for its inclusion,
most notably from some local authorities and representatives of local communities.
With regards to compatibility, in the event of conflict between the aims,
greater weight shall be given to objective (a). This is designed
to ensure that the key objective of National Park Authorities must be to
ensure the conservation and enhancement of the area’s natural and cultural
heritage.
Q. What are NPAs
and what function will they fulfil?
A. National Park Authorities (NPAs) will
be charged with the overall management of their National Park. Their
exact functions will be set out in the designation order for the park,
so each NPA may well have different powers for each National Park.
Once appointed, the NPA will be an independent body which is not a servant
of the crown. Each NPA will have no more than 20 people on it, with
half directly appointed by the local authorities with any part in the National
Park, and the other half directly appointed by the Scottish Ministers.
The members will not be directly elected, as some have advocated, nor will
there be any statutory provision for any interests other than local authorities
to be placed on these NPAs.
Q. How will National
Parks be funded?
A. The funding for each National Park will
come directly from central government. The NPAs will be bound in
any one year by the financial provisions set down in the Budget Act that
year. However, they will be able to raise revenue through charging
for goods and services provided.
Q. How much local
involvement will there be within the National Parks?
A. Local authorities will be allotted 50%
of the seats on the NPA responsible for a National Park within their area.
This allows a greater local say in the running of a National Park than
a wholly Executive-appointed authority. However, there have been
concerns raised during the consultation process that there is no statutory
guarantee of local community involvement within the parks. Some believe
that there should be local referendums on the establishment of National
Parks within their area, whilst others have claimed that the creation of
National Parks is simply another layer of local bureaucracy which should
be discouraged.
Q. When will we start
to see National Parks in Scotland?
A. The first National Park will be created
in Loch Lomond and the Trossachs in summer 2001. The Bill is currently
working its way through the Rural Affairs and Transport and Environment
Committees and should be presented to Parliament in early June. If
the Bill is passed by Parliament as expected, then potential Park areas
can begin to apply for National Park status as soon as possible.
Q. Why should
I care?
A. The creation of National Parks
will give Scotland protected areas which people can visit all year round.
This will give a tremendous boost to tourism in Scotland, and will hopefully
attract many visitors from both home and abroad. It is somewhat strange
that, given Scotland's rich natural heritage, we are one of only two countries
in the world which does not have National Parks. This Bill will set
that right and, as well as offering tremendous days out for people throughout
Scotland and the world, will actively protect some of the country's most
beautiful areas.
Click
here to read the National Parks Bill
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