Agencies to give countryside new ‘voice’
Two new bodies will be created to look after rural communities and the natural landscape under a bill published today.
The Commission for Rural Communities, which is intended to give a strong voice to people in rural areas, will be formally established under the Natural Environment & Rural Communities Bill.
The commission has been in existence since 1 April 2005 as part of the Countryside Agency.
A second agency will be created to look after the natural landscape and biodiversity. Natural England will bring together parts of English Nature, the Countryside Agency and the Rural Development Service.
“The organisations that will form Natural England are already working closely together,” explained Environment Secretary Margaret Beckett.
“Over the coming months they will increasingly act as a single voice and address environmental issues in a more integrated way, providing an authoritative body to conserve and enhance our landscapes.”
Of the Commission for Rural Communities, which has been in existence since 1 April 2005 as part of the Countryside Agency, she said: “It will be charged with ensuring that Government policies are making a real difference on the ground in tackling disadvantage in rural areas.”
The bill is also intended to give the Secretary of State more flexibility when allocating funding to bodies working within Defra, and to introduce measures to “streamline and modernize” wildlife and national park legislation.
Rural Affairs Minister Jim Knight added: “This is the legal cornerstone of implementing last year’s Rural Strategy, which set out an exciting vision of a better quality of life for all, with sustainable development at its heart.”
