§ The Minister for Rural Affairs and Local Environmental Quality (Alun Michael)In my statement of 11 November 2003 on the rural delivery review, I accepted Lord Haskins' broad recommendation to bring together elements of the work done by English Nature, the Countryside Agency and Defra's rural development service into an integrated agency. It is important to me that the integrated agency should have a strong and authoritative voice commanding respect both within and outside Government. It is equally important that the advice I receive from the integrated agency is not only independent, but is seen to be independent. I have therefore decided that this new agency will be established as an executive non-departmental public body.