On Monday, 9 March, ScotWays, as a representee, received formal notification from the Scottish Government’s Environment and Forestry Directorate that it had confirmed the byelaws originally made by Scottish Borders Council on 11 September, under Section 12 of the Land Reform (Scotland) Act 2003, exempting from the right of responsible access the eastern 214ha of the wider 405ha application site, on which it is proposed to construct an enclosed, ‘Center Parcs’ holiday village.  We had objected to the byelaws on the principle and appropriateness of making byelaws to exempt land from access rights, rather than specific concerns about the impact of the byelaws for public access over the Site itself.

We have not yet had sight of the Government’s detailed reasoning for confirming the byelaws, but we have requested a copy of its decision letter.  In the meantime, we are considering the Government’s decision carefully, with a view to determining whether, and, if so, how, to pursue the matter.

As background, ScotWays did not object to the planning application for the ‘Center Parcs’ development. Instead, we made positive suggestions regarding the protection and enhancement of public access in the wider area.

We shall continue to update our News page when there is anything significant to report in respect of the byelaws or the development itself.

More information on our objection to the byelaws is available here.

Featured Image: Center Parcs ©