Background
The Land Reform Action Plan, proposed a 'Review of the Law of the Foreshore and Seabed' with a remit of:
'To consider the existing law of the foreshore and seabed, and to advise on possible reforms with a view to improving clarity and consistency'.
The Scottish Law Commission issued a discussion document in April 2001. From the responses received, they compiled their report 'Review of the Law of the Foreshore and Seabed'. The thrust of the Report was to recommend that common law public rights exercisable on the foreshore should be abolished and replaced with statutory rights, which taken together with other new statutory access rights would preserve the current extent of existing common law rights.
In addition, reflecting common social practice, it recommended that statutory rights exercisable on the foreshore should also be exercisable on areas of the shore above or landward of the foreshore. The statutory rights should be held directly by the public and not by the Crown on their behalf. As with access rights, the local authority would be under a duty to protect the public's rights, although an individual could take court action to vindicate them.
It also recommended that statutory provision should be made stating that the Crown should only own foreshore in Orkney and Shetland to which no udal title can be established.
The Scottish Government is considering how to take this forward.