Countryside Matters!
Church of England Synod
vote on Countryside Issues
'That this Synod
(a) express its concern for rural people and their economy in the wake of the Foot and Mouth epidemic; applaud the response of the Churches at local and national level; and call for a thorough consultation throughout society, initiated by Her Majesty's Government, on the future priorities and role of agriculture in the United Kingdom;
(b) praise the ARC Addington Fund, the Royal Agricultural Benevolent Institution, the Farm Crisis network and other voluntary organisations for their prompt actions in meeting the needs of many farming and other rural people brought about by Foot and Mouth Disease crisis and call upon Her Majesty's Government to respond with much greater urgency and in much greater measure to the financial problems which have become occasioned amongst countryside businesses and Local Authorities and across the economy of many rural areas;
(c) in the tenth anniversary of Faith in the Countryside, renew the Church of England's commitment to its mission and ministry in rural areas, particularly in partnership with other Churches and bodies concerned for the well-being of the countryside and its people;
(d) recognise the significant place accorded to the Church in the Government's Rural White Paper and call for this recognition to be matched by appropriate support by Her Majesty's Government;
(e) affirm its commitment to support the work of the Arthur Rank Centre;
(f) encourage the dissemination of, discussion and appropriate action on the ideas in the spring/summer issue of Country Way;
(g) acknowledge the interdependence of rural, urban and suburban communities; and
(h) call upon Her Majesty's Government to institute a Public Inquiry into the outbreak of the Foot and Mouth disease, including the events leading up to it, its handling and its consequences.'
was carried after a count of the whole Synod. The voting was as follows :
AYES 394
NOES 0