Environment
27 May 2013
National Parks ‘worth £5bn to economy’
ENGLAND’S National Parks are worth as much as the UK aerospace industry to the economy, says a report. National parks are thriving rural economies as well as iconic landscapes and...
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11 May 2013
Split over change to planning rules
Changes to planning rules will make it easier to bring redundant rural buildings back into use. A relaxation of planning rules will allow the use of outbuildings to be changed...
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29 Apr 2013
Cheaper energy in return for fracking?
CHEAPER energy bills could be offered to rural communities that agree to local shale-gas extraction. Fracking involves forcing shale-gas out of the ground by blasting water into rocks. But environmentalists...
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11 Mar 2013
‘Yes’ vote for first neighbourhood plan
RESIDENTS have voted a resounding ‘yes’ in the UK’s first neighbourhood plan referendum. The historic referendum was held in the Upper Eden area of Cumbria on Thursday (7 March). Residents...
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10 Feb 2013
Rural warning over flood defences
A £2.3bn government investment in flood defences continues to discriminate against rural areas, business leaders have warned. The government says it now expects to protect 165,000 homes and businesses from...
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26 Jan 2013
Split over changes to planning rules
PROPOSALS to ease planning rules will put the countryside at risk, say conservationists. Communities and Local Government Secretary Eric Pickles announced a wide-ranging loosening of planning controls on Friday (25...
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21 Jan 2013
Councils face pothole nightmare
RURAL business leaders are urging councils not to cut back on repairs to roads damaged by freezing temperatures. With councils already facing severe budget cuts, business leaders said minor roads...
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02 Dec 2012
£20m flood bill for rural insurer
RURAL insurer NFU Mutual faces a bill of up to £20m following floods across the Midlands, south-west England and Wales. Chief claims manager Matthew Scott said the company was dealing...
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20 Nov 2012
Call for planning to boost growth
RURAL businesses are calling for a planning system that is less costly and bureaucratic to encourage growth in the countryside. Harry Cotterell, president of the Country Land and Business Association,...
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11 Nov 2012
Avoid turbine ‘buffer zones’, councils told
LOCAL councils should avoid creating ‘buffer zones’ around villages to stop wind turbines blighting communities, says a report. Renewable energy experts Regen SW set out the evidence on wind turbines...
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