A DEFIANT Lake District National Park Officer has this week defended the Lake District National Park Authority's controversial recommendation to ditch its 900-strong events programme, which includes much-loved free guided walks, reports Lisa Frascarelli.

In an exclusive one-hour interview with The Westmorland Gazette, Paul Tiplady argued why his authority's decision to drop its events and refocus on attracting ethnic minorities, urban youth and disabled people was a decision of which to be proud and one that had no financial or political strings attached.

This week, in the wake of the authority's decision to defer ratifying the recommendation on the fate of the events programme until February 7, The Westmorland Gazette launches its Save the Walks campaign.

Click on Campaign tab above to see the full story and get the details on how you can participate in our phone in vote for or against saving the walks.