Building houses on the countryside is the best way to defend rural land, an expert from English Nature has said.

Dr Keith Porter, environmental information manager at English Nature, argued that housing estates in the English countryside would support more birds, butterflies and other animals than arable agriculture does.

Forum Response: English Nature

A spokeswoman for English Nature told ePolitix.com: "English Nature believes that both development and agricultural policy and practice need to be sustainable. We are not calling for unconstrained development nor are we saying that housing development is better for the environment than sustainable managed agricultural land use.

"However, our agricultural policy of the last 50 years has led to major environmental damage. In some areas most of the once common wildlife has been lost through intensification of production of crops and livestock or the specialisation of agriculture and the loss of extensive livestock or mixed farming systems.

"We are now seeing major changes in agricultural policies that will help make agriculture more sustainable. For example, the Curry Commission report on Farming and the Government response; the major reforms of the CAP agreed recently in Luxembourg and the development of the Entry Level Agri-Environment Scheme. English Nature will play a full part both in advocating a more sustainable agricultural policy and in implementing recent reforms to create a better environment that benefits people and wildlife.

"At the same time there has been a massive growth in demand for land for development in some parts of the country. We are not advocating unconstrained development. Previously developed built up areas must be recycled and developed in an economical way and we believe all development on Greenfield sites needs to be planned and designed in ways which are more sustainable.

"Nature can be built into the design for new development in a multi-functional way, for example, through Sustainable Urban Drainage and accessible greenspace.

"The way we use land -a precious resource -in the future needs to be much more integrated so that BOTH farming and built development are more sustainable. Through careful design and location and environmental assessment, built development can use land more efficiently and incorporate green space for people and wildlife. Farming systems must change so that they can deliver a wide range of benefits to society including an attractive, diverse and wildlife rich countryside."

Forum Response: National Farmers' Union

Martin Haworth, director of policy at the NFU, told ePolitix.com: "It is nonsense to suggest that the best course of action to promote wildlife and a natural environment in the English countryside is to build housing estates on top of farmland.

"Reducing the amount of land available for agriculture in Britain would force producers to use the remaining land more intensively to meet consumers needs.

"The countryside we all know and love (and as English Nature pointed out, earns £14 billion from tourism) has been shaped by generations of food production. Destroying generations of heritage by building houses would change the countryside out of all recognition - and not for the better.

"Tourists are a lot more likely to want to visit a working farm and find out where their food is produced than to visit a housing estate.

"British farmers aim for sustainable development and work with the environment, not against it. It is in farmers' best interests to work with, rather than against nature.

"Claiming that farming contributes very little to the British economy is absurd. Farming indirectly employs millions of people and supports a thousand and one different enterprises, getting the fresh food from the farm and to the consumer's plate."

Forum Response: Countryside Alliance

Simon Hart, chief executive designate of the Countryside Alliance, told ePolitix.com: "No one can deny that there is a need for more affordable housing in the countryside, but development should be undertaken to promote sustainability and community. We want vibrant communities in the countryside, not just commuter dormitories.

"The countryside is one of our most valuable assets and richness of biodiversity is vital, but the CAP mid term review and the new entry level schemes when implemented will have the ability to provide conservational benefits and are likely to boost biodiversity in rural areas

"Building over the farmland and beautiful landscapes would damage the aesthetic value of rural Britain and correspondingly would have a severe impact on tourism - no one would travel out into a housing estate to look at the view."