§ Mrs. Curtis-ThomasTo ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions what assessment he has made of the level of public awareness on Merseyside of the provisions of the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981. [106421]
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§ Mr. MullinIt is the role of the Government office for the North West to promote environment issues in the Merseyside region. The Government office are currently actively working with others to raise awareness in the North West about biodiversity issues. The Government office is a member of the North West Biodiversity Forum whose aims are to support, encourage and positively influence the conservation of biological diversity in the North West. Other members of the Forum include Lancashire County Council, the Environment Agency, English Nature, the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds, the Joint Countryside Advisory Service, County Wildlife Trusts and North West Water.
The Government office is currently promoting the production of a biodiversity booklet via the Forum to raise awareness among decision makers about biodiversity in the region to highlight, particularly, those species and habitats deemed to be under threat from development.
It is not a policy of the Government to carry out research into public awareness of the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 anywhere in the United Kingdom, although they aim to make as much information available as possible through the Department's website.