Urban exodus squeezes countryside

23 February 1998

Urban exodus squeezes countryside

RESEARCHERS at the University of Newcastle have found thousands of people are
fleeing Englands cities every year to find a better life in the shires.

Their survey – the first of its kind – found 4,900 people every week head out
of the cities, creating a weekly loss of 1,700 people from urban areas.

The survey, dubbed Urban Exodus, covered 68 metropolitan districts and London
boroughs. It was carried out for the Council for the Protection of Rural England
(CPRE). It demonstrated that the countryside is under “unsustainable”
pressure.

Tony Burton, CPREs assistant director, said the Government needed to tackle
the problem to relieve the pressure for new housing and roads in the
countryside.

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  The Guardian 23/02/98 page 7