The government announced funding of £3.9 billion under the government's rural development programme for England for the period 2007-2013 – more than double the previous budget.
Source: Press release 6 December 2007, Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (020 7238 6000)
Links: Defra press release | Natural England press release
Date: 2007-Dec
A report examined remote communities in England where there was a perceived lack of economic dynamism, and where the impact of major cities was often remote. It said that the previous identification of these areas based on notions of rurality and low incomes as a proxy for low economic productivity had been a useful but blunt instrument. It put put forward a case for a new debate to identify those areas outside the economic reach of cities, as a means of broadening an understanding of the challenges faced by the city region approach.
Source: Ivan Annibal and Patrick Boyle, Productivity and Place: Economic Performance in Remote Areas, Local Government Association (020 7664 3000)
Date: 2007-Sep
A briefing paper examined migration of workers from the 'A8' countries (new member countries of the European Union) into rural areas of England since May 2004. It provided an evidence base on the existing numbers of such workers in rural areas, and the impact this was having on rural economies and societies.
Source: A8 Migrant Workers in Rural Areas, Commission for Rural Communities/Countryside Agency (020 7340 2900)
Links: Paper
Date: 2007-Jan