CAMPAIGNERS staged a mass trespass at the weekend as they continued to fight for the right to roam.

Activists roamed the Debatable Lands on the border of England and Scotland to draw attention to the marked difference in laws on either side of the boundary.

Twenty years ago, in the biggest shake-up of land rights for centuries, the Scottish Parliament not only introduced a community right to buy in the vast rural estates that span Scotland but enshrined the right to roam much of the country in law.

While private gardens, cropland and sensitive natural habitats are excepted, anyone can legally camp on or roam the land in Scotland on condition that they leave no trace behind.

Campaigners at Right to Roam argue that these same rights must be extended to England, where, excluding footpaths, just 8 per cent of the land is legally accessible to the public.

The weekend’s mass trespass to the north of Carlisle made its way to the border itself, where activists were met by Scottish comrades.

Nadia Shaikh, from the English and Adhamh O Broin from the Scottish side, each waded into the Kershope Burn, which marks the border, where Ms Shaikh received a copy of the 2003 Land Reform Act, and the pair symbolically shared beer and whisky with each other and the burn.

Right to Roam member Harry Jenkinson said: “We’re not doing this as protests: they are celebrations of the land. It’s a coming-together of people with respect for the rights of the countryside.

“We don’t just want access to the land: we want to be empowering people who would not normally be out, people who do not normally feel safe there.”

Right to Roam co-founder Guy Shrubsole said: “We saw during lockdowns how important access to green space was, but also how unequal access was — people who weren’t able to get out and didn’t have private gardens or weren’t able to get out into the countryside.

“What we’re calling for is a right of responsible access. We are talking very much about responsibilities going hand in hand with an extension of rights.”

A Department for Food & Rural Affairs spokesperson said: “To restore nature and to protect the livelihoods of people who live and work in the countryside, we need to enjoy its beauty responsibly.

“We must not replace our rights of way with a right to trample.”