§ Miss McIntoshTo ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what measures she proposes to strengthen rural proofing at regional level. [183913]
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§ Alun MichaelThe application of rural proofing principles at all levels of government, both in policy formulation and delivery, makes an essential contribution to our aim of building sustainable rural communities. The rural teams in all the non-London Government Offices play a leading role, as the latest Countryside Agency's Rural Proofing Report makes clear and will continue to bring rural proofing into all major policy workstreams at regional and sub-regional levels, including those of the Regional Development Agencies. Joint publications by the Regional Development Agencies show how they are approaching their work with a clear focus on Sustainable Development.
The Regional White Paper 'Your Region, Your Choice' makes rural policy one of the functions of the proposed Elected Regional Assemblies, and Regional Housing Boards are required to rural proof their policies.