The rural affairs secretary has announced a "ruthless streamlining" of government agencies for the countryside.

In a Commons statement on Wednesday, Margaret Beckett revealed that a "small and well-focused" New Countryside Agency will act as expert watchdog and advocate on behalf of rural communities.

And an "integrated agency" will merge the work of the English Nature, the current Countryside Agency and the Rural Development Service and build on their "world-class strengths".

"These arrangements are aimed at improving effectiveness in the delivery of our three policy priorities, within an enduring framework of sustainable development," she said.

"They will also deliver efficiencies, exploiting operational synergies and removing duplication.

"They will provide greater freedom to staff to get on with delivering what our customers need from government."

Legislation

The Cabinet minister promised that legislation will be introduced next year to create the new body which will "deliver our policy objective of a healthy countryside valued and used in a sustainable way".

"The new agency will be a powerful, independent, statutory non-departmental public body, building on the world-class strengths of English Nature, the Countryside Agency and the Rural Development Service," Beckett said.

"Its remit will be the integrated management of our natural heritage that the challenges and environmental threats of the 21st century demand.

"This will include biodiversity, landscape and sustainable use of the countryside, including recreation and access."

Publishing the government's plan for the future of rural communities, she also announced that funding for regional development agencies will rise from £45 million to £72 million next year following last week's spending review.

However Conservative spokesman Tim Yeo said the statement ignored agriculture and farming.

"This will alarm many people who depend on that vital industry for their livelihood," he said.

"It suggests that even now Labour ministers don't recognise the central role farmers play in protecting, maintaining and enhancing the rural environment, and the extent to which prosperity in many parts of the countryside is still very directly related to the fortunes of the agricultural industry."