THIS year, with travel affected by the coronavirus restrictions, holidays abroad have been limited with most opting not to take the chance and having a staycation.

This has brought significant demand for popular locations right across the country. As demand for holiday homes, hotels and resorts surged, and continues to surge, more and more people are finding it too expensive. Whilst East Lothian has benefitted from the tourist footfall, there has also been some challenges, particularly with wild camping along our coastline.

Whilst wild camping is not illegal, indeed it is promoted across some very well-known websites, it must be done responsibly and sensibly.

Over the past few months we have had countless complaints from concerned members of the public about the number of tents pitched at places such as Tyninghame and Yellowcraig. We work very closely with the Countryside Rangers who are extremely passionate about the area and do a fantastic job keeping it safe and clean.

It is always very disappointing when I hear of the abuse that some of these rangers receive from people for simply doing their jobs. We take a zero tolerance approach to this and leave no stone unturned when we launch an investigation.

We all want people to enjoy the coastal areas and parks but there are key things that we ask you to do.

The Scottish Outdoor Access Code (SOAC) outlines the responsibilities of campers and highlights the ‘leave no trace’ philosophy.

Unfortunately that hasn’t always happened and the mindless and selfish acts of a minority tarnish it for the rest. We have seen litter, including glass and cans, old tents and food stuff left for others to clean as well as trees damaged for firewood.

We do not promote fires, particularly in wooded areas, but if you must have a fire, do it on the beach responsibly and ensure the area is cleaned and safe for others after. We recently had a very serious report where a child got badly burnt after a disposable BBQ had been left hot and buried under sand; this is not acceptable.

Last weekend we held a ‘wild camping’ initiative across our coastal areas where complaints have been received.

We need to balance the right to wild camp with the disruption it causes others and sought to provide advice and guidance to those camping. Police officers and rangers went out together over a few days to speak to people.

Thankfully everyone was respectful and took on our advice. We will continue to have the initiatives during holiday seasons and warm weather periods.

I see on the news all the issues that has been caused in other areas of Scotland as well as England through increased tourism and although we have had some disruption here, I am pleased that it is not nearly the levels of the disruption and challenges seen elsewhere.

As the holiday season comes to a close and the schools go back for term, I hope you all had an opportunity to get a holiday or break away. Hallowe’en and Bonfire Night as well as COP26 are the big ticket items approaching on my calendar. Keep an eye on our social media pages.