Access for all along England's coast? by David Atkinson

Out for a walk by the sea this weekend? The idea of some bracing sea air and a dramatic swell-coated cliffs sounds good to me. Besides, no one in England lives more than 70 miles from the sea.

But there's a hitch. When I set out from home in England's Northwest, I'm unlikely to walk for more than a few miles before finding the path blocked off.

The lack of coastal access in the Northwest was highlighted over summer by a report by Natural England, an advisory body to the government on the natural environment.

The coastal access map was drawn up for the Marine and Coastal Access Bill, which was passed through Parliament on October 27, and has now passed to the House of Lords for amendments to be made on November 11.

The Natural England audit forms part of an effort to make England's 2,784 -mile coastline accessible to walkers. Separate projects operate in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.

Overall, 1,827 miles of Britain's coast is deemed to comprise 'satisfactory, legally secure paths'.

But only 184 miles of the 237-mile Northwest coastline is accessible to walkers. The figure, the report concludes, reflects industrial use on Merseyside and along the west coast of Cumbria.

If you live in the Southwest, however, the picture is far rosier with 586 miles of open access. Indeed, the South West Coast Path, a 630-mile national trail, is held up as a prime example of the value of coastal access, generating £300m in tourism revenues per year.

Should the bill become law, landowners will be forced to open their boundaries. That's one in the eye for Jeremy Clarkson. And the Queen may not be amused to learn she will have to open up private land on her North Norfolk Sandringham estate for ramblers.

The Kinder Scout Mass Trespass in the Peak District first set the agenda for walkers in 1932. Now it's our turn.

Let's hope the Lords back the bill. It will then be your right to roam the coast.

David Atkinson blogs about tourism in the Northwest at Hit the North (http://atkinsondavid.blogspot.com); more stories from www.atkinsondavid.co.uk.

Forbidden City, Beijing, by Patricia Aithie

(Click photo to enlarge)

"Mr Safi Ullah was a tall thin man in white beard and white punjabi. He gave me tea and a copy of the headmaster’s report from 1948. As I left I pressed him to accept a 1000 taka note – a little less than £9. “For books,” I insisted. He took it under protest. “For books,” he agreed. I reflected afterwards that I had given him enough to keep a 10-year-old in school for a year."

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