As an open and honest organisation, we would like to advise our supporters that we have received an official complaint regarding Mountain Aid and its operation. This complaint, made formally to ourselves and OSCR, was made by Mr Gordon Pierson, a former Trustee of the now-defunct Boots Across Scotland. Many of the current Mountain Aid committee members were committee members of "Boots" during its successful years, but left as the charity began to implode.

When we received the complaint, we notified OSCR ourselves as we wanted to remain transparent to all. We have nothing to hide.

Mr Pierson’s complaint alleges that we are claiming that "Mountain Aid is the new Boots". However as all our supporters will appreciate, we have never claimed to be the "new Boots". We established Mountain Aid, starting out with no money and no supporters, when it was obvious that "Boots" was in terminal decline.

It came as no surprise to us that OSCR have dismissed the complaint, and they have passed it back to ourselves to handle as an internal matter. We have repeated an earlier offer made to Mr Pierson to discuss his concerns, however he has made it clear to us that he “may try to contact Boots supporters to alert them to the matter”. As an open and honest organisation, we want to keep our supporters informed of the true facts.

The committee members and trustees of Mountain Aid are extremely proud of the work we are doing in promoting mountain safety. We will endeavour to continue this hard work through the dedication of our committee of volunteers.

Finally, if you were a Boots Across Scotland supporter, Mountain Aid would be delighted to hear from you!