§ Mr. MorleyTo ask the Secretary of State for the Environment (1) if the Government will publish in full the ERM consultants' analysis report of the responses to the draft hedgerow regulations; [19006]
(2) how many responses were received to the Government's consultation paper on the draft hedgerow regulations; and how many responses were in favour of incorporating landscape as one of the criteria for defining an important hedgerow. [19005]
§ Mr. ClappisonCopies of the full report on the analysis of the responses to the Government's consultation have been placed in the Library of the House, and are available, price £10, from Environmental Resources Management. In addition, the executive summary of the report is available free from my Department and arrangements have been made for individual responses to be placed on deposit in the library of my Department.
Some 465 responses were received by 23 December 1996. A total of 100 comments related to the landscape and amenity value of hedgerows, most of which were in favour of incorporating landscape and amenity importance as explicit criteria in the draft Regulations.
The Government have responded positively to these criticisms by providing a new criterion, which recognises the particular landscape and amenity value of hedgerows that run alongside public rights of way. In addition, landscape importance is an inherent feature in almost all the criteria. For example, historic field patterns are 730W fundamental landscape features, and the diversity of plant species and features—such as trees and hedge banks—that attract a range of wildlife may also give a hedge its significance in the landscape.