County voices concerns over to park decision

01 April 2009

The new South Downs National Park is to include disputed areas such as the western Weald, Lewes and Ditchling, but local authorities are calling for a new kind of authority approved by the councils, rather than ministers.

Environment secretary, Hilary Benn, pleased most campaigners by saying the new 627 square mile national park from Beachy Head to the outskirts of Winchester would be created to include most of the areas in dispute at the public inquiry. He said it was fitting to mark the 60th anniversary of national parks legislation with a new designation.

‘Having considered the inspector’s report and recommendations carefully, and agreed that the statutory criteria are met, I have decided that the South Downs, including the so-called western Weald, should be confirmed as a national park,’ he said.

But West Sussex County Council, which opposed inclusion of the western Weald because it believed Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB) status offered greater protection, urged a new type of park authority with members nominated by councils.

Leader, Henry Smith, said the local authorities would be holding talks on a set of proposals for a localist approach to the park authority, which was likely to be set up next year.

‘I am still anxious about some aspects of a national park, such an emphasis on tourism which could spark a vast increase in visitor numbers. That could damage what we need to protect and conserve,’ he said.

The Campaign to Protect Rural England celebrated the news, however, and congratulated the Government on a great gift to the nation.

‘This hugely-positive decision could not come soon enough for a landscape which is one of the most pressurised in the country,’ said chief executive, Neil Sinden.

DEFRA’s plans for the new authority envisage it having between 29 and 37 members, 15-19 of whom would be councillors nominated by their authorities, six to eight would be parish councillors, and eight-10 would be DEFRA nominees.

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