England’s wildlife and landscape received a boost this week with news from Defra that the European Union’s Rural Development Committee has agreed the Rural Development Programme for England 2007-2013.

Sir Martin Doughty, Natural England’s Chair.

Through this Programme, Natural England will provide £2.9 billion of Environmental Stewardship Scheme funding for farmers.

Welcoming the announcement, Sir Martin Doughty, Natural England’s Chair, said: “I am very grateful to Defra for securing this funding, which shows a clear commitment to creating a healthier natural environment through the continuation of a successful Environmental Stewardship scheme.

These schemes improve the overall environmental health of our countryside and make a major contribution to the UK’s commitments on farmland birds and bringing Sites of Special Scientific Interest into favourable condition.”

Natural England already has agreements with over 32,000 farmers and landowners covering some 5 million hectares, which amounts to more than half of all the farmland in England.

Sir Martin continued: “It is important for the public to be able to see where their money is being spent though Environmental Stewardship and how their local area is benefiting. Which is why last month Natural England launched a new online map which shows all the land currently in one of these schemes."

“We will continue our efforts to improve the scheme to make it even more effective locally and seek to bring more people and land in to these agreements,” concluded Sir Martin.

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