New national parks for Scotland: coalitions in conflict over the allocation of planning powers in the Cairngorms

Abstract

The introduction of national parks in areas where existing authorities have traditionally been responsible for developing policies, preparing plans and making decisions on development proposals, can be a threat to longstanding interests. This paper explores this problem by examining the struggle for control of planning in one of Scotland's first national parks, the Cairngorms. Recent research (McCarthy et al., 2002) has established the policy context for this investigation. Informed by research focusing on the consultation process which led to the establishment of the national park, this paper analyzes how alternative approaches to the allocation of planning powers were captured in competing storylines, around which polarized coalitions of interest formed. Opening such insights into the considerations that shape institutional design—a combination of contested problem framing and straightforward political struggles over the locus of regulatory power—starkly reveals the challenges to the new park authority as it seeks to establish consensus between conflicting interests.

Notes

Correspondence Address: Tim Richardson, Department of Town and Regional Planning, University of Sheffield, Sheffield S10 2TN, UK. Email: [email protected]

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Tim Richardson

Correspondence Address: Tim Richardson, Department of Town and Regional Planning, University of Sheffield, Sheffield S10 2TN, UK. Email: [email protected]