Cairngorms bosses have been accused of having no credible strategy to tackle wildfires - with the stunning region at risk of becoming a “tinderbox”.

The Scottish Gamekeepers’ Association claimed a blueprint to tackle major blazes in the National Park area is “non-existent”. And they insisted current plans are based on local landowners and gamekeepers coming to “bail them out” by helping firefighters if a wildfire breaks out.

It follows fury over a new SNP-Green government policy to restrict muirburn, a method of controlled burning of old heather moor. Critics claim the practice can damage wildlife. But landowners say it allows for new growth and prevents and curb wildfires by reducing the amount of vegetation for blazes to rip through during dry conditions.

This sounds like a strand of the ongoing reaction to the recent muirburn bill, which has seen landowners claiming that it violates their human rights among other things.