In an astonishing attack on the chief executive of the Ramblers, Vice President Chris Hall has claimed the walkers’ charity has lost touch with the needs of its members.

Responding to a feature in the Guardian, in which Ramblers Chief Executive Tom Franklin claimed the organisation has “achieved a world-class network of paths and open access in the country”, Hall said the access situation in England and Wales had, in fact, degenerated in the past three years.

“Local authorities now have less money to spend on maintaining the paths, and the Ramblers’ Association itself is showing less interest in fighting for public access,” he claimed.

Hall, a former President and editor of the Countryman, went on to say: “For an example of world-class status for open access, we need look no further than Scotland, with its across-the-board right to roam. Whereas in England hundreds of square miles of uncultivated land, especially in the South and Midlands, remain shut to the public by the whims of landowners”.

There was also criticism of Franklin’s enthusiasm for urban walking and targetting “inner city” youths as potential Ramblers members.

“It is all very well to be chasing the young walkers – with, of course, a trendy genuflection to Facebook and Twitter,” he said, “but if Mr Franklin had a realistic sense of the needs of ramblers of all ages he would launch a public and aggressive campaign to free the paths and remove the fences on open country.

“We campaigned thus for nearly 70 years and the membership of the association rose year by year. Since 2003 our numbers have fallen from more than 140,000 to fewer than 123,000 because we have ceased to be on the frontline in getting the paths and countryside open.”