People appear to be mixing MEA (Minimum Enroute Altitude) up with MSA (meaning Minimum Safe Altitude, not Minimum Sector Altitude).
Minimum Safe Altitude, relating to VFR, is something like
Except when necessary for takeoff or landing, no person may operate an aircraft below the following altitudes:
(a) Anywhere. An altitude allowing, if a power unit fails, an emergency landing without undue hazard to persons or property on the surface.
(b) Over congested areas. Over any congested area of a city, town, or settlement, or over any open air assembly of persons, an altitude of 1,000 feet above the highest obstacle within a horizontal radius of 2,000 feet of the aircraft.
(c) Over other than congested areas. An altitude of 500 feet above the surface, except over open water or sparsely populated areas. In those cases, the aircraft may not be operated closer than 500 feet to any person, vessel, vehicle, or structure.
Minimum Enroute Altitude, which is includes the concept of a 'designated mountainous area' is an IFR thing, but one should certainly have this calculation in mind when flying VFR X-country, maybe flying at or above this altitude would mean you were obeying (a) above, and you would impress an examiner with your airmanship. I also thought mountainous areas were a bit higher than found in the UK, if talking about flying over them.