§ Ms RuddockTo ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food (1) what(a) grants and (b) other support will be available from his Department for the conservation and protection of dry stone walls from April 1996; [2325]
(2) what plans he has to introduce a nationwide grant scheme for the conservation and protection of dry stone walls. [2326]
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§ Mr. BoswellThe Department's responsibilities in this area extend only to England. Payments for the restoration of dry stone walls are available under the environmentally sensitive areas scheme. We shall shortly issue a consultation paper giving detailed proposals for the future of the countryside stewardship scheme, which provides payments for environmental purposes in the wider countryside outside ESAs.