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Commons Bill [HL]

I welcome the amendments put forward by my noble friend and the noble Baroness, Lady Byford, although I would not support them in their present form if they came to a vote. But it is very useful to probe the question of the relative weight that will be given and the way in which decisions will be made in relation to commoners, the interests of the neighbourhood, conservation interests and the wider public. Following the passage of the Countryside and Rights of Way Act, probably the most important single interest that the wider public have nowadays is that from the end of last month—that is, from now—all common land is open to rights of access, subject to the provisions of Part 1 of the Act. If there is to be an exchange of substantial, or even quite small, pieces of land in particularly important places, the question of access must clearly be considered. I seek an assurance from the Minister that such a consideration will be given due weight, which, in my view, should be considerable.