Blair to unveil new rural report
26 January 2000
Blair to unveil new rural report
TONY Blair will unveil a report on the future of rural Britain during a
visit to the south west next week, it has been reported.
The Financial Times quotes a Downing Street source who says the report is
“factual work to assess the impact of government policy on the countryside”.
The Prime Minister is also expected to address the National Farmers
Union AGM next week, as first reported by FWi.
The newspaper says these initiatives are meant to counter criticism that
Tonwnie Tony — as he was dubbed by protesting farmers at the Labour
Party conference last year — has little sympathy for the countryside.
The government is expected to publish a rural white paper within the next
few months.
Proposals expected in the report include looser controls on farmland to
allow development to take place and cutting the regulation of rural
businesses.
Downing Street quiet on aid rumours, FWi, 20 January 2000
Secret report to shake up agriculture, FWi, 20 October 1999
- Financial Times 26/01/2000 page 2