HC Deb 04 June 1986 vol 98 cc567-8W
Mr. Tony Banks

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will make a statement regarding the joint manpower watch arrangements.

Mrs. Rumbold

The joint manpower watch has been in operation, in England and Wales, since 1975. The

Million hectares
National parks 1.36
Green belts 1.8
Areas of outstanding natural beauty 1.71
Sites of special scientific interest 0.82

Heritage coasts are measured by length rather than area. The latest estimate is that 1,260 kilometres of the coast of England and Wales are covered.

No figures are available of the amount of land area covered by conservation areas, of which however there are some 5,500. There is some overlap between the categories—for example, there are extensive SSSIs in national parks and AsONB.