New report underlines importance of thriving rural communities (10/12/1999)
The Government should consider modernising the policy framework on rural issues to support its vision of thriving communities, according to a new report by the Performance and Innovation Unit (PIU).
The PIU report, 'Rural Economies', is a discussion document. The PIU suggests that the Government should consider policy changes which would help to promote a rural England with enterprising economies, a sustainable agriculture, an enhanced environment and thriving communities. These include:
- An enterprising countryside - by reducing the regulatory burden on business, improving the skills base and infrastructure in rural areas and raising the standard of advice and support services available to business. The PIU also recommended improving the support for tourism and recreation sectors;
- Encouraging sustainable agriculture - helping farmers to adapt and diversify their businesses to generate sustainable commercial advantage. This could be done through a package of measures to promote enterprise, switch support to farmers to invest in schemes which enhance the environment, and a focus on new and emerging markets, such as that for organic food;
- Protection of the environment - the PIU suggests introducing a new system which protects land of high environmental value from inappropriate development and stronger, more transparent mechanisms to limit and compensate for any damage caused by development in the rural environment. It also suggests improved access to the countryside for people from both rural and urban areas, and better management of traffic at the local level; and
- Promoting thriving communities - by improving the access to public and private services in rural areas. Public bodies could be encouraged to pool resources and make greater use of mobile provision, and to use technology to overcome problems of distance and sparsity. Services to address social and economic problems could be targeted more effectively. The PIU suggest the Government considers a new commitment to market towns, which recognises their social and economic importance.
Environment Minister Michael Meacher, who has responsibility for rural issues, said:
'Rural England is a place of great beauty and diversity. The countryside is one of our country's most valuable assets and something to be enjoyed by all. The Government wants to make sure that rural areas will continue to be places where people want to live, work and enjoy leisure. For this to happen we need those areas to have a strong local economic base that can sustain vibrant communities and nurture a high-quality rural environment.
'Nick Brown announced an important step when he set out the Government's 'New Direction for Agriculture' on Tuesday. This embraces many of the PIU's ideas. Our further thinking, taking account of the debate engendered by this report, will be brought together in the forthcoming Rural White Paper.'
Notes for editors
- Media copies of the report, Rural Economies, are available from the Cabinet Office press office on 0171 270 0043. It will also be published on the World Wide Web at: www.cabinet-office.gov.uk/innovation.
- Other copies of the report are available from the Stationary Office, ISBN 0-11- 702673-5, priced £15. The number for telephone orders is 0870 600 5522, or fax on 0870 600 5533.
- The Cabinet Office Performance and Innovation Unit (PIU) is designed to help Government tackle strategic issues that cut across the boundaries of Whitehall departments. It is part of the Government's drive for more joined-up policy making and reports direct to the Prime Minister through the Cabinet Secretary, Sir Richard Wilson.
- The remit of the PIU study was:
- to identify the main problems experienced by rural economies in England;
- to outline the rationale for government intervention in rural economies;
- in the light of the government's wider vision for rural areas, the understanding of rural economic problems and the rationale for intervention, to define a set of objectives for government policies on rural economies in England; and
- to identify the instruments and organisational arrangements that will allow the government to achieve these objectives most effectively, and make appropriate recommendations for change to existing government activity.
- The DETR is currently preparing a Rural White Paper jointly with MAFF to set out a new vision for the countryside. It is expected that the White Paper will be published next year.
- Responses to the PIU's report, to be fed into the Rural White Paper, should be sent by 11 February 2000 to: The Rural White Paper Team, DETR, Zone 3/A5, Eland House, Bressenden Place, London, SW1A 2AS.
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