Ten ways we will make a difference
Our vision is of:
- a living countryside, with thriving rural communities and access to high quality public services;
- a working countryside, with a diverse economy giving high and stable levels of employment;
- a protected countryside in which the environment is sustained and enhanced, and which all can enjoy;
- a vibrant countryside which can shape its own future and with its voice heard by Government at all levels.
Our aim is to sustain and enhance the distinctive environment, economy and social fabric of the English countryside for the benefit of all.
To deliver this we will ensure that our main programmes on health, education, housing and transport achieve real improvements for rural communities. In addition we are allocating £1bn over the next 3 years on rural programmes, in addition to increased agriculture support, and the £1.6bn (7 year) England Rural Development Programme.
A LIVING COUNTRYSIDE
We will give rural communities a Fair Deal on services. For the first time we are publishing a Rural Service Standard setting out what rural users can expect, with an annual independent audit.
1. Support vital village services
We want everyone to have the basic services they need - shops, health and education - close at hand. To support services at the heart of village life we will:
- take forward, in the light of consultation, our proposals for 50% mandatory rate relief to help village shops, pubs and garages which offer a community benefit;
- retain and renew the rural Post Office network and make banking, internet, pensions, benefits, prescriptions, health and other services available from rural post offices;
- create a new ‘Community Service Fund' to support local enterprise and enable key services to be re-established (£15m).
- continue the presumption against closure of rural schools; invest to improve facilities; connect all rural schools to the Internet by 2002;
- reduce the rate of VAT on repairs and maintenance for listed churches - subject to EC approval.
2. Modernise rural services
We will use new technology to give rural areas the benefits and opportunities of the digital age - on lifelong learning, skills, job search, health and other public services. We will:
- improve GP services through mobile service delivery units and new primary care one stop Centres with internet and tele-links to local hospitals in over 100 rural communities (£100m);
- provide 100 Internet Learning and Access Points in rural areas by the end of 2000;
- increase resources for rural policing.
3. Provide affordable homes
We want young families to be able to live in the communities where they grew up. We will:
- double the Housing Corporation programme by 2003-04 which, with local authority investment and use of planning powers, we expect to provide a total of 3,000 affordable homes a year in small rural settlements and a total of around 9000 homes a year across all rural districts (£300m);
- make better use of the planning system to secure a higher proportion of affordable homes, in mixed developments in market towns and villages;
- consult on a proposal to allow local authorities to charge the full council tax on second homes and to use the revenues to alleviate local housing shortage.
4. Deliver local transport solutions
We want to improve transport for all in rural areas making best use of car, bus, rail and community transport. We will:
reduce taxation for motorists as announced in the Pre-Budget Report to help those who rely on the car.
increase by a third the number of rural households with a regular bus service within 10 minutes walk by 2010;
promote flexible transport including car clubs, car-sharing, dial-a-ride, taxi and minibus schemes through 500 more Rural Transport Partnership projects and by providing parishes with up to a £10,000 grant to develop tailor-made community based solutions.
A WORKING COUNTRYSIDE
5. Rejuvenate market towns and a thriving local economy
We want a diverse rural economy that attracts new businesses which fit with their surroundings, and provides opportunities for all. We will:
- increase funding for market town regeneration by £37m to strengthen their role as a focal point for economic opportunity, transport links, leisure and services through a £100m programme for 100 towns;
- establish a new remit on rural regeneration for Regional Development Agencies, sharing in a £500m budget increase by 2003;
- improve business support and invest in ICT and transport infrastructure.
6. Set a new direction for farming
We want to help farming and related industries become more competitive, diverse, modern and sustainable. We will:
- seek reform of the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) which will reduce the role of production subsidies and increase the funds available for rural development including environment, whilst reducing the burden on consumers and taxpayers;
- build on the opportunities being provided through the £1.6bn England Rural Development Programme (ERDP) for farmers to develop new business and benefit from support for conserving and enhancing the countryside;
- help farmers by additional help for small abattoirs, by regulating only when it is necessary, by providing business support, and by helping farm diversification through better operation of the planning system and by consulting on rate relief.
A PROTECTED COUNTRYSIDE
7. Preserve what makes rural England special
We want to look after, restore and conserve the landscape, wildlife, architecture and traditions that make our countryside special. We will:
- reduce development pressure through our policies for successful cities and by targeting development on brownfield sites;
- strengthen management of the best countryside;
- develop a more holistic approach which takes better account of all landscapes in national best practice guidance;
- reverse the decline in farmland birds, restore threatened habitats such as lowland heath and increase funding to maintain biodiversity.
8. Ensure everyone can enjoy an accessible countryside
People of all backgrounds should be able to enjoy attractive and accessible countryside. We will:
- modernise the rights of way system through new legislation and additional (£46m) finance;
- open up access to commons, heath, mountain, and moorland by end 2005;
- launch a new initiative to enhance and restore the countryside around towns.
A VIBRANT COUNTRYSIDE
9. Give local power to country towns and Villages
We will help Town and Parish councils develop a new role and give communities the opportunity to help shape their future. We will:
- fund a new programme of town and village plans, to help 1,000 communities map and safeguard their most valued features and influence future development plans;
- enable Quality Town and Parish Councils to play a greater role in managing local facilities in partnership with Counties and Districts, subject to Best Value;
- equip every Parish and Town Council with an internet link and strengthen their role as the voice of the local community.
10. Think rural
We want to ensure that rural needs are taken into account. We will:
- establish a rural proofing mechanism to ensure that all major policies are assessed for their rural impact
- establish a national and regional rural stakeholder panels informed by independent assessment of Government's performance on rural issues.
- report on a new set of countryside indicators.
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Explanatory Notes 1 Consultation with the devolved administrations. This White Paper applies to England but some of the legislation and measures referred to are UK wide or shared between England and Wales. Where these matters are devolved, we are consulting the devolved administrations as appropriate on how initiatives in these areas will be taken forward. In some cases measures have already been taken by one or more of the devolved administrations, for example on giving local authorities discretion to end the council tax discount on second homes in Wales, which we propose to extend in England. In other cases there will be initiatives in the White Paper which the devolved administrations will want to consider further before forming a view and for some - for example in relation to many agriculture measures - it is important to proceed on a UK wide basis. We will want to remain in close contact with the devolved administrations to consider what may be appropriate in each case. 2 The public expenditure tables shown as an annex to each part cover only a small proportion of total public expenditure in rural areas. Rural and urban areas benefit alike from the main central and local government expenditure programmes. For the purposes of this exercise, we have not attempted to carve up the major programmes between urban and rural, not least because in many cases public services will be provided through towns and cities, for rural as well as urban dwellers. However, a number of programmes are specifically targeted at rural areas or needs, including a substantial part of the MAFF budget. The tables, one for each main section in the Rural White Paper, give an indication of the total value of such programmes, alongside the share of certain national programmes where the portion spent in rural local authority districts can be identified. Figures for 1996-97 are given only when comparable information is available. Some figures for 2003-04 represent projected expenditure in cases where plans are not yet finished. 3 The quotations in this paper are taken from Living in the Countryside, a report by Alan Hedges for the Countryside Agency, based on interviews with rural residents of different age groups and social groups in Buckinghamshire, Cumbria, Lincolnshire, Dorset, Somerset and Derbyshire. 4 Full details of publications referred to in italics in the text can be found in the bibliography at the back. |
Page last modified:
19 May, 2005
Page published: 28 November, 2000