RORY DISMAYED AT DEREGISTRATION OF COMMON LAND

Rory was disappointed to hear that Cumbria County Council has approved the deregistration of 3,230 ha of common land owned by the Ministry of Defence at Warcop.

He said: “Although I welcome the fact that 23 per cent of the total area – known as Area Victor – was not deregistered, as a passionate supporter of Commons and traditional farming in Cumbria, I wanted all the three commons at Warcop, Hilton and Murton to be kept on the Commons register. Common land is an asset much valued for the public benefits it provides – over 90% of common land has been deregistered since the 16th Century and now the asset sits at a mere 3% of England.

“I have written to defence minister Tobias Ellwood to raise both my concerns and those of my constituents about the case. I now believe it is very important for the MoD to work with locals and mitigate their concerns that the MoD will use this deregistration to limit local’s access to the area.”