Stiles and kissing gates are the latest aspects of country life to fall victim to political correctness.

They have been a familiar feature of the landscape for centuries, but local authorities now believe that installing them along footpaths and rights of way is a breach of the Disability Discrimination Act 1995.

This law requires public services to make “reasonable adjustments” to allow disabled access.

A number of councils have identified stiles and kissing gates as obstructions for people with mobility problems or with visual impairments. Some want stiles banned and kissing gates replaced by larger ones that allow wheelchair access.

The move is also part of the Government’s attempt to encourage more people to visit the countryside and to learn more about farms and the provenance of food.

Some parish councils are concerned about the look of new gates and about losing long-established stiles over fences, walls and hedgerows.

Farmers are questioning why they should pay for new access points when some are used just three or four times a year.

Suffolk County Council is looking at replacement gates that will allow wheelchair access but keep livestock secure. Guy McGregor, the Conservative council member responsible for roads and transport, said: “We have an obligation to provide access to footpaths for everyone. The problem is that many kissing gates are virtually impossible to use if you are in a wheelchair. Stiles are no use for people in wheelchairs and are just as difficult for parents with children in buggies.There are landowners who are not interested in any access at all and so where there are rights of way it is down to the council to pay and install gates. The larger kissing gates cost £250 and there are hundreds that need replacement throughout the county. Yet our transport grant has been cut by £1.5 million this year.”

John Collen, a cattle farmer and chairman of the National Farmers’ Union in Suffolk, is concerned about the risk of animals escaping. “Kissing gates do a splendid job keeping livestock secure and allowing public access. It is difficult to see what alternatives there could be,” he said.

He added: “A lot of footpaths crossing fields are unsuitable for wheelchairs. Are we going to see paths across fields hard-surfaced so they can be used by wheelchairs at any time?” The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs said that it did not expect all gates to be replaced overnight. It said: “Where a kissing gate or stile is an historic feature there is no reason why it could not be left in place alongside a structure that is easier to use for those with mobility problems.”

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