Marine and Coastal Access Bill [HL]

My Lords, it is appropriate to consider coastal access—or should I say exercise, as the House changes mode? We raised this issue in Committee. I have modified the amendment slightly, but we still have very strong concerns about the way in which coastal margin will be extended out from the route, across private land. We fully support the establishment of the coastal route and we also see the value of the second objective in Clause 286, to expand access sufficiently to allow for recreation. We have had some interesting debates and no little amusement about cliff climbing, base jumping and other intrepid sports particularly loved by the noble Lord, Lord Greaves, who I am sorry to see is not in his place today. There are many places along our coast where these recreational activities are particularly suited. However, the primary reason for this part of the Bill is, and should remain, to enable the public to walk around our coast. The secondary objective is not of the same priority as the first, but it can add most value to the public by allowing them to enjoy the coast. The recreational strip would in the vast majority of cases be utilised between the route and the sea itself. My amendment limits the automatic establishment of coastal margin to that strip of land. As the Minister made clear in Committee, land to the landward side of the route might occasionally fall into the definition of coastal land as well, or it might have recreational uses, such as where the path goes along the bottom of a cliff, rather than the top, for example. My amendment would therefore allow land in that situation to be designated coastal margin with the agreement of the landowner or occupier. When such agreement is not forthcoming, it might be reasonable to assume that in the huge majority of cases the land would be of more value to the landowner than to any would-be users. The Government have rested their hopes that coastal margin will be sensibly designated in the systems of consultation, and so on, that they are implementing. I hope, of course, that the system will ensure that the margin will be sensibly designated and that the Government’s later amendment will certainly help to redress any confusion as to its extent. But even where that is the case, some members of the public will still wander where they should not. An expectation of margin to the landward of the route will unavoidably increase the number of these incidents. I hope that the Minister understands our concerns over the coastal margin and will take the same constructive attitude to address them as he has done on so many others. I beg to move.