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Strategic review of Scottish Natural Heritage
Editorial
Filed 27 Aug 04
©www.land-care.org.uk
The Scottish Executive has issued a news release
(1) stating that Scottish Natural Heritage
(SNH) is to be subject to a strategic review of its operation.
The news release states that
"SNH was last reviewed in 1998 but the review due in 2003
was delayed until discussions on the relocation of its headquarter
functions to Inverness had been concluded".
This in itself is surely an extraordinary decision
on the part of the Scottish Executive. Would it not have been better
to arrange the timing of the review before the headquarter functions
were transferred to Inverness in view of the substantial expense
involved and the upheaval of staff? After all no one is supposed
to know what the outcome of such a strategic review might be before
the heralded "consultation" process has even begun.
It would be an understatement to say that the
activities of SNH are controversial. Indeed the People Too
organisation came to life in 2002 largely on account of widespread
concern over the activities of SNH and other quangos and special
interest lobby groups, such as the RSPB and the National Trust for
Scotland to name but some (2). Their first
meeting in the Dewar Centre, Perth attracted more delegates than
either of the main annual conferences of SNH or what was then called
the Scottish Landowners Federation (SLF). Not only that, but the
range of backgrounds of the delegates and the level of presentation
and discussion was much superior.
Ian Mitchell's well documented book "Isles
of the West" articulates the concerns of many (3),
including the manner in which SNH has treated local communities
in its myopic quest for "conservation" and "biodiversity"
whilst running roughshod over the genuine efforts of others who
have achieved so much over many years.
The handling by SNH of matters pertaining to the
Land Reform (Scotland) Act and the Scottish Outdoor Access Code
(SOAC) is a further example (4).
SNH has immense influence over what happens to
the land in Scotland but is sadly lacking in a competent knowledge
of farming, being apparently largely staffed by ecologists, geographers
and graduates from the burgeoning opportunistic courses run by some
universities on the management of the environment. At the University
of Dundee, for example, such a course comes under the Faculty of
Arts & Social Science without any input in relation to science
(such as agricultural science)(5). As a
consequence SNH is seen to perform as a politically motivated agency
of its paymaster, the Scottish Executive, with a severe lack in
the breadth of its vision.
SNH contributes substantially to the undermining
of Scottish farming, such that today the average employment on farms
in Fife is stated to be one half an employee per farm. SNH has contributed
to this sad situation through its over emphasis on green issues
and its unrealistic (but highly politicised) approach to access
to the countryside. It is alleged that SNH has not been running
its suckler herd on the Isle of Rum in a competent manner and yet
has been claiming subsidies for it from its SEERAD masters (6).
Is SNH even basically competent to contribute to the discussion
as to what "good agricultural condition" is in terms of
the new form of agricultrual subsidy, the single farm payment, which
is effective from January 2005? (7).
One can only wonder at the audacity of SNH staff
to insist on job security and career structure (8)
together with a £20,000 tax free bribe to persuade some of
them to move to Inverness from their beloved Edinburgh in the central
belt and all its urban attractions. They do this while those who
have looked after Scotland's land over the centuries go to the wall.
The exodus of skilled people from farming is impressive with little
evidence that the young are prepared to take it on.
Readers may well enjoy the caricature of SNH as
it was seen when the Scottish Executive first decreed that it wanted
SNH to move out of Edinburgh so as to spread the distribution of
government employees more widely throughout the land (9).
Another concern about SNH and its fellow quangos
is that there seems to be a cosy group of influential folk who seem
to do the rounds heading them up.
Surprise, surprise: who is going to chair the
strategic review of SNH other than a former Director-General of
the Forestry Commission - an organisation not noted for conspicuous
success, nor indeed for good financial management (10).
But then the appointment would have to have been approved by the
Scottish Executive, would it not.
Does anyone still believe that the endless number
of "consultations" serve any purpose other than window
dressing? Should anyone still need to be disillusioned, they should
take the trouble to read the 1384 responses SNH received in relation
to its "consultation" on the Scottish Outdoor Access Code,
and try to reconcile that with SNH's account of these responses
(11).
In her editorial to the 3rd issue of Fresh
Air, Kirsty Macleod makes the point:
"Two fundamental problems continue to blight our fighting
efforts in rural Scotland, the unaccountability of quangos and
the fear of speaking out against any of the octopus arms of the
State"
The People Too organisation is running
a second conference at the Dewar Centre, Perth on Friday 29th October,
2004. The topic is
"Who governs Scotland? Is Scotland under the control of
Scottish Ministers and the Scottish Parliament or the Scottish
Executive civil service and lobby groups? Quangos of all shapes
and sizes continue to police themselves through internal complaint
procedures while government controls over funding and freedom
grow even stronger"
However, it would best to respond in due course
to the consultation process on the strategic review of SNH that
the Scottish Executive has heralded. The problem for most of the
people who carry direct financial responsibility for working and
managing the land (such as the nation's farmers) is finding the
time, as they are progressively squeezed out by an Executive who
has farming low on its agenda, thinks it can get more votes by pushing
green issues to excess and applies rules (that it blames on the
EC) with depressing nit-picking obsession while losing sight of
the principles which these rules are supposed to achieve.
©www.land-care.org.uk
References
1. Scottish Executive (2004).
Strategic review of Scottish Natural Heritage.
Press release: Thursday 26, 2004.
http://www.scotland.gov.uk/News/Release/2004/08/26100325
2. People Too. PO Box 8002, Spean
Bridge, Inverness-shire, PH34 4EP
Email:kirsty.macleod2@ukonline.co.uk
3. Mitchell, Ian (2001). Isles
of the West. A Hebridean voyage.
Birlinn Ltd. ISBN 1841 581 50X. Reprinted June 2004
4. Irvine, James (2003). Does
SNH conduct itself as an honest broker or as a political manipulator?
See SCOTTISH OUTDOOR ACCESS CODE Homepage, filed 25 Oct 03,
www.land-care.org.uk
Click Here to View.
5. Editorial (2003). SLF appoints
a new access officer with no training or experience in farming/agriculture,
See SCOTTISH OUTDOOR ACCESS CODE Homepage, filed 04 Oct 03,
www.land-care.org.uk Click
Here to View
6. Editorial (2004). Questions
to be answered on Scottish Natural Heritage Highland herd on Rum.
People Too: issue 3, summer 2004, pp 8-9. Obtainable by Email:kirsty.macleod2@ukonline.co.uk
7. Irvine, James (2003). SEERAD's
CAP reform roadshow: Perth 13 Nov 2003.
See SOCIAL/ENVIRONMENTAL/POLITICAL Homepage, filed 17 Nov
03, www.land-care.org.uk Click
Here to View
8. Mitchell, Ian (2003). Nature's
protectors should get out more.
Sunday Times August 3, 2003. Reproduced in Land-Care with permission.
See ENVIRONMENT Homepage, filed 23 Aug 03, www.land-care.org.uk
Click
Here to View
9. Sketch (2002). SNH's new hielan'
hame. Quango moves out of Edinburgh "to get closer to its customers"
Fresh Air: issue 1. Reproduced on Land-Care with permission
See LIGHT RELIEF Homepage, www.land-care.org.uk Click
Here to View
10. Leader (2004). Tales from
the Forestry Commission. Fresh Air: issue no 3, summer 2004
Available from People Too, PO Box 8002, Spean Bridge, Inverness-shire,
PH34 4EP
Email:kirsty.macleod2@ukonline.co.uk
11. Editorial (2003). Redrafted
SNH SOAC pays little heid to consultation responses.
See SCOTTISH" OUTDOOR ACCESS Homepage, Filed 02 Dec
03, www.land-care.org.uk Click
Here to View
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