Morons!

Scum. Sub-human scum.

Idiots !! But may I question legallity surrounding an action like this, just out of interest. Are those rocks in this case protected, is it a SSSI, are they'owned' by the NT ? If a climber, say, on Napes Needle, or indeed the rocks in question here, were to dislodge the top boulder during summiting, highly unlikely, but bear with me, would it be looked on in the same way as the morons actions in this case, or if they decided to have a go at 'rocking' the top rock off the Napes. Obviously it's malice aforethought, and vandalism, but generally that is against someones property, and as such a police matter, is this a severe telling off instance, I hope not. It is a genuine query if anyone has any more informed musings than mine, but just to reiterate........idiots and morons.

@ Frank, deliberately damaging private property is criminal damage. Accidentally damaging something is not. Sometimes accidental damage can still lead to criminal charges if the accident was due to recklessness or dangerous actions or breaches of other legal orders etc. If someone makes a complaint then the police have a duty to investigate and a decision would be made by the CPS as to whether or not there was a case to answer.

Although something may be owned by the National Trust it is still technically private property. Most land in England is owned by somebody or other.

The sad thing is that this is something that nature has taken thousands of years to create and has been visited, viewed and enjoyed by tens of thousands of people over the years. Yet in a matter of minutes a few brain dead idiots destroy it deliberately. What kind of parents must these people have?

I see that the rocks in question are owned by the NT, and quite rightly their ownership alludes to damage to their property, leading to culpability on the morons part, and as such of witht their heads. As an aside then, if someone were to injure themselves on one of the NT's paths in that area, due to neglect, or bad repair, could I raise a claim against the NT for neglect on their part, as I don't think you enter NT property on the understanding that if you trip/fall/slip, due to wonky paths, it's your fault. I might be wrong,and there might be numerous HSE notices all over the place, stating just this, but can't bring to mind any at Tarn Howes.

@ J Jefferys. It depends. There was a case in Ireland where someone sued either a National Park Authority or something similar and won damages.

As a rule it would be very difficult to injure yourself in the countryside and blame the landowner. However, if there was something dangerous on that land that the landowner is aware of and doesn't point it out or make attempts to make safe then they may have a case to answer especially if it is not a natural feature say for example a mineshaft. Another area of risk could be something like duckboards that were missing or broken and someone injured themselves. Again a claimant would have to show negligence on the part of the landowner.

You also have to consider what rights you have to be somewhere. A PROW over private land only give you the right to be on that path and not to roam freely. However, a Local Authority has a duty to maintain that right of way, so things like stiles should be in a usable and non dangerous condition(sometimes they're not). I'm not sure what the situation is on Access Land but my feeling is that there will be something in the Access Agreement that puts responsibility on the user rather than the landowner.

Tripping over a stone or falling off a cliff is your own fault. A judge would likely take the view that people who go into the great outdoors do so at their own risk.

The actions of these morons is despicable of course.

The opportunities for weaselling are most interesting. Are courses on offer for this activity?