Access to open country within the Mid Ulster district
Dear Mid Ulster District Council,
further to the provisions of the Access to the Countryside (Northern Ireland) Order 1983 (Part III),
I am writing to request information on any 'open country' within your district to which the Council (or its precursors Cookstown, Dungannon & South Tyrone, or Magherafelt District Councils) has secured public access.
The above Order defines three mechanisms by which public access to open country may be secured, namely: access agreements (Article 28), access orders (Article 29) and compulsory acquisition (Article 39).
Please could you provide a list within your district of any such: (1) access agreements entered into, (2) access orders made and (3) compulsory acquisitions of land.
For any of the above that exist, please could you provide:
(a) the date enacted, (b) the size of the land in hectares, (c) a map of the land in question, and (d) a copy of the respective access agreement, access order or folio deeds as applicable. Please feel free to redact any personal data of individuals appearing in these records.
Please could you also provide records of any consultations your Council has undertaken pursuant to Article 27 of the Order.
For the avoidance of doubt, my request only relates to land within your district that is considered to be 'open country' as per Article 25 of the above Order, not to general amenity land or public parks.
Yours faithfully,
Ligand Fields
Thank you for your email which will be passed to the appropriate council
service for response.
This email is solely intended for the recipient identified above
('intended recipient'). The contents of this email are confidential and
may be subject to legal professional privilege. Only the intended
recipient may rely on the contents of this email. The contents of this
email do not express the views of Mid Ulster District Council (“the
Council”) unless otherwise clearly stated. The sender (including the
Council) cannot guarantee that this message or any attachment is virus
free. Any person who opens or otherwise accesses an email from the sender
in the future does so at their own risk and acknowledges and agrees that
the sender (and the Council) is not responsible for any loss or damage
suffered by any person. Privacy Information As a public body, the Council
may be required to disclose this email (or any response to it) under Data
Protection and/or Freedom of Information legislation, unless the
information contained is covered by an exemption. The Council treats your
personal data in compliance with the legislation. To learn more about how
your data is processed please go to www.midulstercouncil.org/privacy. If
you receive this email in error please immediately report the error to the
sender and permanently delete this email from all storage devices.
Good afternoon
Thank you for your information request submitted with Mid Ulster District
Council on 08/05/2024.
I believe the name you have provided is a pseudonym.
Ligand field theory, in [1]chemistry, one of several theories that
describe the [2]electronic structure of coordination or
complex [3]compounds, notably [4]transition metal complexes, which consist
of a central [5]metal atom surrounded by a group of electron-rich atoms or
molecules called ligands
Section 8(1)(b) of FOIA requires that a request for information must
include the requester’s real name. If the requester is using an obvious
pseudonym then their request won’t meet the requirements of section
8(1)(b) and will technically be invalid.
For your request to be progressed further you will need to provide your
real name. Failure to do so within 10 working days will result in this
request being closed.
Regards
Ursula Roberts
Information Governance Officer
From: Ligand Fields <[6][FOI #1128500 email]>
Sent: Wednesday, May 8, 2024 8:39 PM
To: Mid Ulster Info <[7][Mid Ulster District Council request email]>
Subject: Freedom of Information request - Access to open country within
the Mid Ulster district
Dear Mid Ulster District Council,
further to the provisions of the Access to the Countryside (Northern
Ireland) Order 1983 (Part III),
I am writing to request information on any 'open country' within your
district to which the Council (or its precursors Cookstown, Dungannon &
South Tyrone, or Magherafelt District Councils) has secured public access.
The above Order defines three mechanisms by which public access to open
country may be secured, namely: access agreements (Article 28), access
orders (Article 29) and compulsory acquisition (Article 39).
Please could you provide a list within your district of any such: (1)
access agreements entered into, (2) access orders made and (3) compulsory
acquisitions of land.
For any of the above that exist, please could you provide:
(a) the date enacted, (b) the size of the land in hectares, (c) a map of
the land in question, and (d) a copy of the respective access agreement,
access order or folio deeds as applicable. Please feel free to redact any
personal data of individuals appearing in these records.
Please could you also provide records of any consultations your Council
has undertaken pursuant to Article 27 of the Order.
For the avoidance of doubt, my request only relates to land within your
district that is considered to be 'open country' as per Article 25 of the
above Order, not to general amenity land or public parks.
Yours faithfully,
Ligand Fields
-------------------------------------------------------------------
Please use this email address for all replies to this request:
[8][FOI #1128500 email]
Is [9][Mid Ulster District Council request email] the wrong address for Freedom of
Information requests to Mid Ulster District Council? If so, please contact
us using this form:
[10]https://www.whatdotheyknow.com/change_re...
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For more detailed guidance on safely disclosing information, read the
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[12]https://www.whatdotheyknow.com/help/ico-...
[13]https://www.whatdotheyknow.com/help/ico-...
Please note that in some cases publication of requests and responses will
be delayed.
If you find this service useful as an FOI officer, please ask your web
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Dear Sir
Thank you for your request for information and subsequent clarification of
your identity submitted with Mid Ulster District Council
on 14/05/2024 under the Freedom of Information Act 2000 (FOIA).
Your request has been referred to the relevant Council Officers and a
response will be issued to you as soon as a response becomes available, in
accordance with FOIA.
Yours sincerely
Ursula Roberts
Mid Ulster District Council
Tel: 03000 132 132
From: Ligand Fields <[FOI #1128500 email]>
Sent: Wednesday, May 8, 2024 8:39 PM
To: Mid Ulster Info <[Mid Ulster District Council request email]>
Subject: Freedom of Information request - Access to open country within
the Mid Ulster district
Dear Mid Ulster District Council,
further to the provisions of the Access to the Countryside (Northern
Ireland) Order 1983 (Part III),
I am writing to request information on any 'open country' within your
district to which the Council (or its precursors Cookstown, Dungannon &
South Tyrone, or Magherafelt District Councils) has secured public access.
The above Order defines three mechanisms by which public access to open
country may be secured, namely: access agreements (Article 28), access
orders (Article 29) and compulsory acquisition (Article 39).
Please could you provide a list within your district of any such: (1)
access agreements entered into, (2) access orders made and (3) compulsory
acquisitions of land.
For any of the above that exist, please could you provide:
(a) the date enacted, (b) the size of the land in hectares, (c) a map of
the land in question, and (d) a copy of the respective access agreement,
access order or folio deeds as applicable. Please feel free to redact any
personal data of individuals appearing in these records.
Please could you also provide records of any consultations your Council
has undertaken pursuant to Article 27 of the Order.
For the avoidance of doubt, my request only relates to land within your
district that is considered to be 'open country' as per Article 25 of the
above Order, not to general amenity land or public parks.
Yours faithfully,
Ligand Fields
-------------------------------------------------------------------
Please use this email address for all replies to this request:
[1][FOI #1128500 email]
Is [2][Mid Ulster District Council request email] the wrong address for Freedom of
Information requests to Mid Ulster District Council? If so, please contact
us using this form:
[3]https://www.whatdotheyknow.com/change_re...
Disclaimer: This message and any reply that you make will be published on
the internet. Our privacy and copyright policies:
[4]https://www.whatdotheyknow.com/help/offi...
For more detailed guidance on safely disclosing information, read the
latest advice from the ICO:
[5]https://www.whatdotheyknow.com/help/ico-...
[6]https://www.whatdotheyknow.com/help/ico-...
Please note that in some cases publication of requests and responses will
be delayed.
If you find this service useful as an FOI officer, please ask your web
manager to link to us from your organisation's FOI page.
Dear Mid Ulster Council,
you not provided the requested information within the required timeframe.
Please advise if you still intend to provide a reply, or if I will need to escalate to the ICO.
Many thanks
Ligand Fields
Dear Sir
As we received confirmation of your real name following a clarification
request to you on 14^th May, this therefore is considered to be the date
received. Day 1 will start from 15^th May and response due date is 12^th
June.
Yours sincerely
Ursula Roberts
From: Ligand Fields <[FOI #1128500 email]>
Sent: Friday, June 7, 2024 9:24 AM
To: Ursula Roberts <[email address]>
Subject: Re: FOI Acknowledgement - Access to open country within the Mid
Ulster district
Dear Mid Ulster Council,
you not provided the requested information within the required timeframe.
Please advise if you still intend to provide a reply, or if I will need to
escalate to the ICO.
Many thanks
Ligand Fields
Dear Sir
I refer to my email of 07/06/2024 in relation your request under the
Freedom of Information Act 2000 (FOIA) regarding access to open country
within the Mid Ulster district .
Our response to your request is due on 12/06/24 . Unfortunately, it is
taking longer than expected to deal with your request. I apologise for
this delay and confirm the Council will issue you with a response as soon
as it becomes available.
Yours sincerely
Ursula Roberts
Mid Ulster District Council
Tel: 03000 132 132
This email is solely intended for the recipient identified above
('intended recipient'). The contents of this email are confidential and
may be subject to legal professional privilege. Only the intended
recipient may rely on the contents of this email. The contents of this
email do not express the views of Mid Ulster District Council (“the
Council”) unless otherwise clearly stated. The sender (including the
Council) cannot guarantee that this message or any attachment is virus
free. Any person who opens or otherwise accesses an email from the sender
in the future does so at their own risk and acknowledges and agrees that
the sender (and the Council) is not responsible for any loss or damage
suffered by any person. Privacy Information As a public body, the Council
may be required to disclose this email (or any response to it) under Data
Protection and/or Freedom of Information legislation, unless the
information contained is covered by an exemption. The Council treats your
personal data in compliance with the legislation. To learn more about how
your data is processed please go to www.midulstercouncil.org/privacy. If
you receive this email in error please immediately report the error to the
sender and permanently delete this email from all storage devices.
Dear Sir
Thank you for your information request, submitted with Mid Ulster District
Council under the Freedom of Information Act 2000 (the Act) on 08/05/24 to
provide information regarding - Access to open country within the Mid
Ulster District, I apologise for the delay in our response.
The Council has considered your request and responds as detailed:
Request:
Please could you provide a list within your district of any such: (1)
access agreements entered into, (2) access orders made and (3) compulsory
acquisitions of land.
Response:
I can confirm that the Council does not hold the information that you have
requested as no agreements, orders or compulsory acquisitions of this
nature have been made for ‘open country’ within our District.
I hope this is of assistance. However, under the Act, if you are not happy
with the way in which your request has been handled, you have the right to
ask for an internal review. This review, should be requested within 2
months of the date of this response and should be sent to:
Chief Executive
Mid Ulster District Council
Dungannon Office
Circular Road
DUNGANNON BT71 6DT
[email address]
If you are not content with the outcome of the internal review, you can
ask the Information Commissioner for a decision on whether the Council has
complied with its responsibilities under the Act. The Information
Commissioner can be contacted at:
Information Commissioner’s Office
Wycliffe House
Water Lane
Wilmslow
Cheshire SK9 5AF
https://ico.org.uk/global/contact-us/
https://ico.org.uk/make-a-complaint/
If I can be of any further assistance, please do not hesitate to contact
me.
Yours sincerely
Ursula Roberts
Mid Ulster District Council
Tel: 03000 132 132
Dear Mid Ulster District Council,
thank you for the recent reply by Ursula Burns to my FOI #1128500, indicating that your Council does not hold any record of granting public access to 'open country' pursuant to Articles 28, 29 or 39 of Part III of the Access to the Countryside (Northern Ireland) Order 1983.
I would like to exercise my option to request an internal review of your response.
This is because:
it appears to contradict a reply that Magherafelt Council gave to the NIEA in 2011, quoted in a written answer by the then Minister for the Environment (AQW 2760/11-15, published on the NI Assembly 'AIMS' portal at https://aims.niassembly.gov.uk/questions...)
At that time, Magherafelt Council was reported to have made 72 (!) Access Agreements pursuant to Article 28 of the above Order, although in fairness the Minister suggests this figure is likely to be an error (most probably as the total land area of these 72 sites was reported at only 0.2 hectares).
Please, for the avoidance of doubt, could you review your records with a view to explaining the discrepancy of response between 2011 and the present day. (For example, it may be that the 72 Access Agreements were time limited and have since expired, or that records of them have been lost when Councils were merged, or it could be that the 2011 response was actually referring to public rights of way (linear paths) rather than to 'right to roam' on open country.)
I look forward to your review.
Yours faithfully,
Ligand Fields
Thank you for your email which will be passed to the appropriate council
service for response.
This email is solely intended for the recipient identified above
('intended recipient'). The contents of this email are confidential and
may be subject to legal professional privilege. Only the intended
recipient may rely on the contents of this email. The contents of this
email do not express the views of Mid Ulster District Council (“the
Council”) unless otherwise clearly stated. The sender (including the
Council) cannot guarantee that this message or any attachment is virus
free. Any person who opens or otherwise accesses an email from the sender
in the future does so at their own risk and acknowledges and agrees that
the sender (and the Council) is not responsible for any loss or damage
suffered by any person. Privacy Information As a public body, the Council
may be required to disclose this email (or any response to it) under Data
Protection and/or Freedom of Information legislation, unless the
information contained is covered by an exemption. The Council treats your
personal data in compliance with the legislation. To learn more about how
your data is processed please go to www.midulstercouncil.org/privacy. If
you receive this email in error please immediately report the error to the
sender and permanently delete this email from all storage devices.
Dear Sir
I acknowledge receipt of your email below. Your internal review request
has been forwarded to the Assistant Director of Development to consider
and respond.
Yours sincerely
Ursula Roberts
Mid Ulster District Council
Tel: 03000 132 132
From: Ligand Fields <[FOI #1128500 email]>
Sent: Saturday, June 29, 2024 8:33 PM
To: Mid Ulster Info <[Mid Ulster District Council request email]>
Subject: Internal review of Freedom of Information request - Access to
open country within the Mid Ulster district
Dear Mid Ulster District Council,
thank you for the recent reply by Ursula Burns to my FOI #1128500,
indicating that your Council does not hold any record of granting public
access to 'open country' pursuant to Articles 28, 29 or 39 of Part III of
the Access to the Countryside (Northern Ireland) Order 1983.
I would like to exercise my option to request an internal review of your
response.
This is because:
it appears to contradict a reply that Magherafelt Council gave to the NIEA
in 2011, quoted in a written answer by the then Minister for the
Environment (AQW 2760/11-15, published on the NI Assembly 'AIMS' portal at
[1]https://aims.niassembly.gov.uk/questions...)
At that time, Magherafelt Council was reported to have made 72 (!) Access
Agreements pursuant to Article 28 of the above Order, although in fairness
the Minister suggests this figure is likely to be an error (most probably
as the total land area of these 72 sites was reported at only 0.2
hectares).
Please, for the avoidance of doubt, could you review your records with a
view to explaining the discrepancy of response between 2011 and the
present day. (For example, it may be that the 72 Access Agreements were
time limited and have since expired, or that records of them have been
lost when Councils were merged, or it could be that the 2011 response was
actually referring to public rights of way (linear paths) rather than to
'right to roam' on open country.)
I look forward to your review.
Yours faithfully,
Ligand Fields
-------------------------------------------------------------------
Please use this email address for all replies to this request:
[2][FOI #1128500 email]
Disclaimer: This message and any reply that you make will be published on
the internet. Our privacy and copyright policies:
[3]https://www.whatdotheyknow.com/help/offi...
For more detailed guidance on safely disclosing information, read the
latest advice from the ICO:
[4]https://www.whatdotheyknow.com/help/ico-...
[5]https://www.whatdotheyknow.com/help/ico-...
Please note that in some cases publication of requests and responses will
be delayed.
If you find this service useful as an FOI officer, please ask your web
manager to link to us from your organisation's FOI page.
Dear Sir
Thank you for your email dated 29/06/2024, requesting an internal review,
following the response received in relation to your FOI re: Access to Open
Country within the Mid Ulster District
(FOI #1128500).
I can advise that this request is currently being reviewed by our
Assistant Director of Development however, can you please provide
clarification on what is being referred to as access to ‘Open Country’
i.e. are these pathways to access existing ‘open country’ or ‘open
country’ in terms of sizeable useable areas ?
I look forward to hearing from you soon.
Regards
Bronagh Harbinson
Mid Ulster District Council
Tel: 03000 132 132
[1]www.midulstercouncil.org
This email is solely intended for the recipient identified above
('intended recipient'). The contents of this email are confidential and
may be subject to legal professional privilege. Only the intended
recipient may rely on the contents of this email. The contents of this
email do not express the views of Mid Ulster District Council (“the
Council”) unless otherwise clearly stated. The sender (including the
Council) cannot guarantee that this message or any attachment is virus
free. Any person who opens or otherwise accesses an email from the sender
in the future does so at their own risk and acknowledges and agrees that
the sender (and the Council) is not responsible for any loss or damage
suffered by any person. Privacy Information As a public body, the Council
may be required to disclose this email (or any response to it) under Data
Protection and/or Freedom of Information legislation, unless the
information contained is covered by an exemption. The Council treats your
personal data in compliance with the legislation. To learn more about how
your data is processed please go to www.midulstercouncil.org/privacy. If
you receive this email in error please immediately report the error to the
sender and permanently delete this email from all storage devices.
References
Visible links
1. http://www.midulstercouncil.org/
Dear Bronagh Harbinson,
to answer your request for clarification:
I am enquiring about access to 'open country' specifically as defined in Articles 28, 29 or 39 of Part III of the Access to the Countryside (Northern Ireland) Order 1983 (as published at https://www.legislation.gov.uk/nisi/1983...), under which your Council has various statutory powers and duties.
Article 25 of the Order defines 'open country' as:
"...any land appearing to the district council ... to consist wholly or predominantly of mountain, moor, heath, hill, woodland, cliff, foreshore, marsh, bog or waterway."
If it is helpful, I note the term 'Right to Roam' often used to describe this kind of free access to an area of land (i.e. not restricted to a defined or signposted linear path), although the 1983 Order itself doesn't use that term.
Hope that clarifies it.
Many thanks
Ligand Fields
Dear Sir
Thank you for clarifying.
A response will be issued in accordance with FOIA.
Regards
Bronagh Harbinson
[1]www.midulstercouncil.org
From: Ligand Fields <[FOI #1128500 email]>
Sent: Tuesday, July 9, 2024 4:52 PM
To: Bronagh Harbinson <[email address]>
Subject: Re: Internal review of Freedom of Information Request - Access to
Open Country within the Mid Ulster District
Dear Bronagh Harbinson,
to answer your request for clarification:
I am enquiring about access to 'open country' specifically as defined in
Articles 28, 29 or 39 of Part III of the Access to the Countryside
(Northern Ireland) Order 1983 (as published at
[2]https://www.legislation.gov.uk/nisi/1983...), under which your
Council has various statutory powers and duties.
Article 25 of the Order defines 'open country' as:
"...any land appearing to the district council ... to consist wholly or
predominantly of mountain, moor, heath, hill, woodland, cliff, foreshore,
marsh, bog or waterway."
If it is helpful, I note the term 'Right to Roam' often used to describe
this kind of free access to an area of land (i.e. not restricted to a
defined or signposted linear path), although the 1983 Order itself doesn't
use that term.
Hope that clarifies it.
Many thanks
Ligand Fields
Dear Sir
Thank you for providing further clarification on your recent FOI query.
The Council has considered your email dated 09/07/2024 and confirms that
Council does not hold the information that you have requested, as no
agreements, orders or compulsory acquisitions of this nature have been
made for ‘open country’ within our District.
I hope this is of assistance. If you are not content with the outcome of
the internal review, you can ask the Information Commissioner for a
decision on whether the Council has complied with its responsibilities
under the Act. The Information Commissioner can be contacted at:
Information Commissioner’s Office
Wycliffe House
Water Lane
Wilmslow
Cheshire SK9 5AF
[1]https://ico.org.uk/global/contact-us/
[2]https://ico.org.uk/make-a-complaint/
If I can be of any further assistance, please do not hesitate to contact
me.
Yours sincerely
Claire Linney
Mid Ulster District Council
Tel: 03000 132 132
[3]www.midulstercouncil.org
From: Ligand Fields <[FOI #1128500 email]>
Sent: Tuesday, July 9, 2024 4:52 PM
To: Bronagh Harbinson <[email address]>
Subject: Re: Internal review of Freedom of Information Request - Access to
Open Country within the Mid Ulster District
Dear Bronagh Harbinson,
to answer your request for clarification:
I am enquiring about access to 'open country' specifically as defined in
Articles 28, 29 or 39 of Part III of the Access to the Countryside
(Northern Ireland) Order 1983 (as published at
[4]https://www.legislation.gov.uk/nisi/1983...), under which your
Council has various statutory powers and duties.
Article 25 of the Order defines 'open country' as:
"...any land appearing to the district council ... to consist wholly or
predominantly of mountain, moor, heath, hill, woodland, cliff, foreshore,
marsh, bog or waterway."
If it is helpful, I note the term 'Right to Roam' often used to describe
this kind of free access to an area of land (i.e. not restricted to a
defined or signposted linear path), although the 1983 Order itself doesn't
use that term.
Hope that clarifies it.
Many thanks
Ligand Fields
Dear Bronagh Harbinson,
thanks for the reply, but forgive me, it does not provide any explanation as to why Magherafelt Council reported to the NIEA in 2011 that it had 72 open country sites totalling 0.2 hectares (as per Written Answer AQW 2760/11-15, published on the NI Assembly 'AIMS' portal at https://aims.niassembly.gov.uk/questions...)
Explaining this discrepancy was why I requested the internal review!
Yours sincerely,
Ligand Fields
Dear Sir
I acknowledge receipt of your email dated 11/07/2024.
I would appreciate if you can please further clarify, your internal review
request.
Yours sincerely
Bronagh Harbinson
Mid Ulster District Council
Tel: 03000 132 132
[1]www.midulstercouncil.org
From: Ligand Fields <[FOI #1128500 email]>
Sent: Thursday, July 11, 2024 11:33 AM
To: Bronagh Harbinson <[email address]>
Subject: Internal review of Freedom of Information request - Access to
open country within the Mid Ulster district
Dear Bronagh Harbinson,
thanks for the reply, but forgive me, it does not provide any explanation
as to why Magherafelt Council reported to the NIEA in 2011 that it had 72
open country sites totalling 0.2 hectares (as per Written Answer AQW
2760/11-15, published on the NI Assembly 'AIMS' portal at
[2]https://aims.niassembly.gov.uk/questions...)
Explaining this discrepancy was why I requested the internal review!
Yours sincerely,
Ligand Fields
Dear Bronagh Harbinson,
Sorry, I'm not sure what aspect you don't understand! :)
Maybe you're not seeing previous parts of the email chain?
You can follow all the emails regarding this FOI in order at https://www.whatdotheyknow.com/request/a...
But to try and summarise: basically I have been trying to research the public's 'right to roam' in Northern Ireland.
Despite a common perception that such a right does not exist in Northern Ireland, the Access to the Countryside (NI) Order 1983 (see https://www.legislation.gov.uk/nisi/1983...) in fact gives district councils and Stormont considerable statutory powers to designate 'right to roam' access on areas of 'open country'. I have FOI'd all the NI district councils and DAERA to see what use they have made of these powers. In their responses, several councils got confused between 'access to open country' (aka right to roam) [Part III of the above Order] and 'public rights of way' (PRoWs)[Part II of the Order] - Mid Ulster was one of them.
In the course of my research, I discovered that the same research exercise had been carried out in 2011, by a Green Party MLA, who put the same question about access to open country to the then Environment Minister, who in turn put it to all the district councils - the answers were published as AQW 2760/11-15 on the NI Assembly AIMS portal (see https://aims.niassembly.gov.uk/questions...).
It turns out that the answer Magherafelt Council gave in 2011 (that it had made Access Agreements on 72 pieces of open coutry, totalling 0.2 hectares) contradicts the answer Mid Ulster Council gave in 2024 (that no access had been provided). (All the 'open country' access of the former Cookstown, Dungannon & South Tyrone, and Magherafelt District Councils is now adminstered by Mid Ulster Council). So I am asking Mid Ulster Council to conduct an internal review of its answer from 2024, to explain the discrepancy, as both answers cannot be correct.
Possible explanations could be that the answer Magherafelt Council gave in 2011 was wrong (perhaps it got confused between PRoWs and right to roam?). Or perhaps the Access Agreements referred to in 2011 was time-limited and have since expired? Or perhaps the records relating to them have been lost. Clearly, it would help answer the question if Mid Ulster Council is able to locate the detailed answer it provided to Stormont in 2011.
Yours sincerely,
Ligand Fields
Dear Sir
I acknowledge receipt of your email dated 12/07/2024. Please accept our
apologies for the delay in replying – due to the extended public holiday
weekend.
Thank you for providing a comprehensive overview of the basis of your
initial FOI request and subsequent request for an internal review. Our
internal review has found that we do not hold the information requested
however, Council will now review why this information is not held.
Thank you for your co-operation.
Yours sincerely
Bronagh Harbinson
Mid Ulster District Council
Tel: 03000 132 132
[1]www.midulstercouncil.org
From: Ligand Fields <[2][FOI #1128500 email]>
Sent: Friday, July 12, 2024 9:56 AM
To: Bronagh Harbinson <[3][email address]>
Subject: Internal review of Freedom of Information request - Access to
open country within the Mid Ulster district
Dear Bronagh Harbinson,
Sorry, I'm not sure what aspect you don't understand! :)
Maybe you're not seeing previous parts of the email chain?
You can follow all the emails regarding this FOI in order at
[4]https://www.whatdotheyknow.com/request/a...
But to try and summarise: basically I have been trying to research the
public's 'right to roam' in Northern Ireland.
Despite a common perception that such a right does not exist in Northern
Ireland, the Access to the Countryside (NI) Order 1983 (see
[5]https://www.legislation.gov.uk/nisi/1983...) in fact gives district
councils and Stormont considerable statutory powers to designate 'right to
roam' access on areas of 'open country'. I have FOI'd all the NI district
councils and DAERA to see what use they have made of these powers. In
their responses, several councils got confused between 'access to open
country' (aka right to roam) [Part III of the above Order] and 'public
rights of way' (PRoWs)[Part II of the Order] - Mid Ulster was one of them.
In the course of my research, I discovered that the same research exercise
had been carried out in 2011, by a Green Party MLA, who put the same
question about access to open country to the then Environment Minister,
who in turn put it to all the district councils - the answers were
published as AQW 2760/11-15 on the NI Assembly AIMS portal (see
[6]https://aims.niassembly.gov.uk/questions...).
It turns out that the answer Magherafelt Council gave in 2011 (that it had
made Access Agreements on 72 pieces of open coutry, totalling 0.2
hectares) contradicts the answer Mid Ulster Council gave in 2024 (that no
access had been provided). (All the 'open country' access of the former
Cookstown, Dungannon & South Tyrone, and Magherafelt District Councils is
now adminstered by Mid Ulster Council). So I am asking Mid Ulster Council
to conduct an internal review of its answer from 2024, to explain the
discrepancy, as both answers cannot be correct.
Possible explanations could be that the answer Magherafelt Council gave in
2011 was wrong (perhaps it got confused between PRoWs and right to roam?).
Or perhaps the Access Agreements referred to in 2011 was time-limited and
have since expired? Or perhaps the records relating to them have been
lost. Clearly, it would help answer the question if Mid Ulster Council is
able to locate the detailed answer it provided to Stormont in 2011.
Yours sincerely,
Ligand Fields
Dear Sir
Please find attached response to your internal review request.
Yours faithfully
Ursula Roberts
From: Ligand Fields <[FOI #1128500 email]>
Sent: Saturday, June 29, 2024 8:33 PM
To: Mid Ulster Info <[Mid Ulster District Council request email]>
Subject: Internal review of Freedom of Information request - Access to
open country within the Mid Ulster district
Dear Mid Ulster District Council,
thank you for the recent reply by Ursula Burns to my FOI #1128500,
indicating that your Council does not hold any record of granting public
access to 'open country' pursuant to Articles 28, 29 or 39 of Part III of
the Access to the Countryside (Northern Ireland) Order 1983.
I would like to exercise my option to request an internal review of your
response.
This is because:
it appears to contradict a reply that Magherafelt Council gave to the NIEA
in 2011, quoted in a written answer by the then Minister for the
Environment (AQW 2760/11-15, published on the NI Assembly 'AIMS' portal at
[1]https://aims.niassembly.gov.uk/questions...)
At that time, Magherafelt Council was reported to have made 72 (!) Access
Agreements pursuant to Article 28 of the above Order, although in fairness
the Minister suggests this figure is likely to be an error (most probably
as the total land area of these 72 sites was reported at only 0.2
hectares).
Please, for the avoidance of doubt, could you review your records with a
view to explaining the discrepancy of response between 2011 and the
present day. (For example, it may be that the 72 Access Agreements were
time limited and have since expired, or that records of them have been
lost when Councils were merged, or it could be that the 2011 response was
actually referring to public rights of way (linear paths) rather than to
'right to roam' on open country.)
I look forward to your review.
Yours faithfully,
Ligand Fields
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