Help us to help nation beatthecoronavirus

These are unprecedented times and we have been impressed and humbled by the positive response of our communities across the national park.

The Cairngorms National Park Authority and the Cairngorms Business Partnership have been working closely with other partners, including community organisations across the park, since the onset of this crisis.

It is not normally in our nature to actively discourage visitors from coming to enjoy this beautiful place.

Visitors are such an essential part of our lives, our communities and our economy and we very much look forward to a time when we can welcome them back safely.

For the time being we want to recognise publicly their contribution in staying away and say thank you.

Almost all accommodation businesses are now closed. Some, including B&Bs and self catering properties, still have ‘guests’.

These guests are either working in our essential services, driving delivery lorries, working in the NHS etc or they would otherwise be homeless including some of our highly valued workers from other countries who are currently unemployed or on furlough and have nowhere else to go.

A face we don’t recognise is not necessarily a stranger and our plea is not to publicly criticise and jump to any judgement.

The very strong chance is that there is a perfectly valid reason for the person to be in our community and we should offer our normal welcome, hospitality and support.

If there are isolated instances of people flouting the rules then please deal with them discreetly by calling 101. We want to make sure we preserve our well-deserved reputation for being a welcoming community, proudly sharing the beauty of the place we are lucky enough to call home.

We are fortunate to live in the

National Park. We can enjoy our daily exercise in an even more peaceful and tranquil environment than usual.

We have a world renowned right of responsible access and the guidance offered by the Scottish Outdoor Access Code helps us all play our part to ensure the national park is enjoyed responsibly.

This is particularly important during springtime to protect the many rare and endangered species and the livelihoods of those who make a living from the land. The code is available on the park authority and VisitCairngorms websites.

We are working together to plan for recovery, to look at how we can re-open and welcome visitors at the appropriate time in a way that is safe and gives confidence to our communities, our workforce and our visitors.

Together we will come through this crisis. We would like to offer our joint and sincere thanks for all of your support. The way our communities have rallied to support each other has reflected our strong cultural heritage and Cairngorms spirit.

Grant Moir, chief executive of the Cairngorms National Park Authority; Mark Tate, chief executive of the Cairngorms Business Partnership and Janet Hunter, chair of the Cairngorms Tourism Partnership

It beggars belief that someone would do such a thing, but it is hardly surprising.

While the vast majority of people have got behind the COVID-19 lockdown, some people just can’t help themselves and think the rules don’t apply to them.

This isn’t a new phenomenon and, sadly, it would appear people like this driver still haven’t learned any humility.

They should be ashamed.

A McLaughlin

Perth