National Park in Galloway: proposal by Scottish Ministers

Annex A - Requirement for NatureScot to act as the reporter

Introduction

1. The Scottish Ministers have decided, in relation to this National Park proposal, to proceed under section 3 of the National Parks (Scotland) Act 2000 (“the 2000 Act”), requiring NatureScot to consider the proposal, undertake a process of consultation and report to them on it in accordance with the provisions in section 3 of the 2000 Act.

Legislative background

2. Section 3(1) of the 2000 Act empowers the Scottish Ministers to require the reporter to consider the proposal and report to them, by a date as may be specified, on the matters which are set out in Section 3(2) of the Act.

3. Section 3(5) of the 2000 Act requires the reporter, on receipt of the National Park proposal, to:

(a) send a copy of it, together with a copy of this requirement, to every local authority any part of whose area is within the area to which the proposal relates,

(b) determine the period (which must be at least 12 weeks) for which the proposal is to be made available for public inspection and notify every such authority of that period,

(c) publicise the proposal in such manner as the reporter thinks fit, and

(d) consult on the proposal.

4. The 2000 Act requires the reporter to consult:

(i) every local authority any part of whose area is within the area to which the proposal relates,

(ii) every community council any part of whose area is within the area to which the proposal relates,

(iii) such persons as appear to the reporter to be representative of the interests of those who live, work or carry on business in the area to which the proposal relates, and

(iv) such other persons as the reporter thinks fit.

Requirement

5. In relation to the proposal for a National Park in Galloway, NatureScot is required to consider the proposal, take forward the consultation process and report to Scottish Ministers in accordance with the provisions in section 3 of the 2000 Act. NatureScot must provide its report to Scottish Ministers by 28 April 2025.

6. The consultation should be participatory and should ensure that people living and working in the area have an opportunity to discuss the issues, consider the content of the proposal including the desirability of a National Park in the area and suggest any alternatives. In addition to consulting local authorities, community councils, businesses, landowners, land managers and interest groups, the reporter should ensure that agencies and public bodies representative of relevant interests are consulted and their views are reported. These should include representatives of the social, economic and environmental interests of the proposed National Park.

7. As set out in Section 3(2) of the 2000 Act, NatureScot is required to consider and report to Scottish Ministers on the following matters:

(a) the area which it is proposed should be designated as a National Park;

(b) the desirability of designating the area in question (with or without modifications) as a National Park;

(c) the functions which it is proposed the National Park authority for the Park should exercise;

(d) the likely annual costs and capital expenses of the authority in exercising its functions; and

(e) such other matters relating to the proposal as the requirement may specify.

8. As provided for by (e) above, the Scottish Ministers require NatureScot to consider and report on the below matters:

(a) the proposed name of the National Park;

(b) who the major stakeholders and interest groups are and how they have been engaged and consulted;

(c) an analysis of the balance of opinion on the matters considered, including specific reference to the views expressed by local communities and businesses (including those representing agriculture and forestry interests) and by bodies and agencies representative of interests which fall outside NatureScot’s main remit;

(d) proposed governance arrangements for the National Park authority including: the proposed size of the authority; the proposed number of elected members; the proposed number of members appointed by Ministers (including those to be nominated by the local authority/local authorities in the area); the proposed date of election to the board; and any particular expertise, knowledge and skillset that should be represented on the board;

(e) an assessment of whether the conditions in section 2(2) of the 2000 Act are satisfied in relation to the area that has been proposed as a National Park.

(f) consideration of the preparatory work and public consultation that was undertaken during the development of the nomination for Galloway to become a National Park and relevant findings within the appraisal report.

(g) options for a new National Park authority in Galloway to be cost efficient, contribute to Scotland’s public sector reform agenda and provide value for money for Scotland as a whole, for example, through shared functions and services with other public bodies and organisations in the South of Scotland and with the existing two National Park authorities; and

(h) recommendations for the development of any transitional arrangements in the area prior to designation as a National Park.

9. In line with paragraph 4 of Schedule 1 to the 2000 Act, the arrangements under which the direct election of members to a National Park authority in Galloway are conducted will not form part of the reporter investigation, they would be set out in an Elections Order.

Directions for consultation

10. In line with the requirement set out above, the following directions on how the consultation is to be carried out are issued by Scottish Ministers to NatureScot under Section 3(6) of the National Parks (2000) Act Scotland:

• Within one month of receipt of this requirement, NatureScot should publish a plan for how it will take forward the reporter investigation, including an outline of the consultation that is required and the communities, organisations, businesses and interest groups it will seek to engage with.
• Every relevant local authority and community council must be engaged and consulted in line with the requirements in Section 3(5) of the 2000 Act.
• Non-executive departmental public bodies and Scottish Government agencies that represent interests relevant to this National Park proposal must be engaged and consulted, and their views reported. These must include those representative of the social, economic and environmental interests of the proposed Park area.
• Consultation should be inclusive, participatory and equality-focused, ensuring proactive engagement with those with protected characteristics including ethnicity, age, disability and intersectionality. Steps should be taken to inform, engage and build understanding of National Parks amongst local communities and interest groups in order to facilitate discussion of key issues. This should include organising and publicising meetings and events with local communities, interest groups, businesses and landowners and managers, using a variety of formats and approaches.
• The preparatory work and public consultation that was undertaken during the development of the nomination for Galloway to become a National Park and relevant findings within the appraisal report should be described in the public consultation which takes place during the reporter investigation, so that consultees can see how this previous work has informed the content of the proposal.
• Record, document and take into account the views expressed by consultees when preparing the report to Scottish Ministers.
• Ensure that any views which are those of NatureScot as statutory adviser on natural heritage matters are kept clear and distinct.

Scottish Government

22 July 2024