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Natural Environment and Rural Communities Bill

I am extremely grateful to my noble friend for raising these important issues. I am bound to say that I too am in some confusion over exactly how certain aspects of the responsibilities of the RDS are to be deployed. I have before me the briefing paper distributed prior to the Committee stage. It is helpful, but it does not explain one or two issues. As I understand it, the environmental functions for which the RDS was responsible are to be transferred to Natural England. That includes agri-environmental schemes under, presumably, Pillar Two. But there are other schemes under the second pillar that apply specifically to rural business schemes. Presumably in the future they will not be dealt with by Natural England, and I assume that they will become the responsibility of the regional development agencies. I should be grateful if the Minister could confirm that. Given the ever-increasing role of the regional development agencies, there is a perception, which I think is true in certain parts of the country, that the RDAs themselves tend to be rather urban-based and do not take their rural responsibilities quite in the way that the Government had originally hoped. That being the case, I fear that those grants that might be applicable in rural areas for rural business schemes operated by the RDAs might not be quite as satisfactory as we would all hope. If the Minister could explain the situation to me, I should be extremely grateful.