"More national parks needed" says Highland MSP
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A call for new land and marine national parks has gone out from the strath’s Scottish Labour MSP.
David Stewart (Highlands and Islands) is urging the Scottish Government to “reinstate the spirit of John Muir”.
National Parks were introduced to Scotland following the passing of the National Parks (Scotland) Act 2000 under the previous Scottish Labour led administration, and there are currently two in Scotland - Loch Lomond and The Trossachs, created in 2002, and the Cairngorms National Park, created the following year.
Mr Stewart recently questioned Holyrood on what plans it had to develop new land and marine national parks, and a response from Paul Wheelhouse, the Minister for Environment and Climate Change revealed that there are “no current plans”.
Mr Stewart, who believes that the Scottish Government should reconsider its position on the expansion of national parks across Scotland said on Friday (16): “National parks were introduced with a twofold aim; to conserve the environment and to provide access to the public, for the Scottish Government to dismiss the possibility of introducing new ones is disappointing.
“It is certainly worth exploring the creation of new national parks across Scotland, as long as there is also strong community buy-in.
“The excellent examples of the Cairngorm and Loch Lomond highlight the success of the national parks in building community engagement and involvement in the development of both.
“Of course we need to balance economic development with protecting our environment and natural heritage, and I think Scotland’s first two national parks show that this can be done.
“In recent days The Scottish Campaign for National Parks and Association for the Protection of Rural Scotland have called for the introduction of more national parks in Scotland and I think that this is something that should seriously be considered. There is scope for further introduction as long as crucial important community engagement and consultation takes place.”
“The Scottish Government should remember that the founding father of national parks was a Scot, John Muir, and I think he would be proud of Scotland’s parks today. I believe it is time to reinstate the spirit of John Muir and seriously explore the creation of new national parks in Scotland, which was a manifesto commitment of the SNP in 2011.”
