Left to chance

The fact that the CRC will not be wound up next month, amid legislative delays, is indicative of the problems that Ministers will face in abolishing quangos, and achieving their stated financial savings.

Compared to the size – and expense – of some organisations which remain within the coalition’s cost cutting sights, this body, headed by Stuart Burgess, is relatively small. It should not stand a chance of withstanding the cuts, even in an abridged form, if the Government’s “bonfire of the quangos” is to succeed.

Conversely, this delay offers Ministers an opportunity to reappraise their approach towards the countryside to ensure that policies, after a series of mishaps over court closures and so forth, are rural-proofed from the outset. For, while some causes have been more effective than others at persuading the coalition to rethink its priorities, there is growing evidence to suggest that the Government does not sufficiently understand the challenges facing the countryside, even though most rural seats are represented by Tory or Lib Dem MPs.

This is illustrated by the fact that funding for local authorities, and others, is predominantly dominated by the local government department while policy, on the whole, come under the remit of Defra. Given that this state of affairs is unlikely to change, it will be even more important – in the years to come – for one body to champion rural matters and ensure that there is far more co-operation between Ministers and their officials.

The future of the countryside is too important to be left to chance.