Archived News July 2004 New incentive for farmers to keep rights of way in good order July 30th Making farm support payments conditional on keeping footpaths and other rights of way in good order is an important win, says the Countryside Agency. Movie puts villagers in the money July 29th Stars of film and TV attended the Welsh premiere of King Arthur in Wales on Wednesday night. Old mining village set to expand July 28th A former mining village in Kent could double in size in the next decade thanks to new expansion plans. Blowing in the wind July 27th Opposition to the growth of wind farms has been escalating in recent months and the debate will be highlighted further this week as the Conservative Party announce that should they win the next general election they intend to make it harder to get planning permission to erect wind turbines. Military cuts will affect rural life July 26th Savage cuts to the Armed Forces were announced last week by the Defence Secretary Geoff Hoon. Horse riding in Wales gets a leg up July 25th An historic agreement was signed at the Royal Welsh Show last week aimed at turning Wales into an international destination for horse riding that could be worth £27 million every year. Gothic mansion residents go bats online July 24th A ruined Gothic mansion in a secluded Gloucestershire valley is proving to be the perfect location for what is probably Britain’s first bat webcam. School closure 'threat to village' July 23rd Closing a rural school and sending pupils to a new one a few miles away could threaten the future of an entire village, the High Court has heard. Village fears losing its only pub July 22nd People living in a Suffolk village with no shops or village hall fear they are about to lose its only pub. Eye defects track otter decline July 20th Vets have discovered a possible reason why otters disappeared from British rivers during the 1950s and 1960s. Long-winded village name protest July 19th A village is given a new 66-letter name - the longest in Britain - by campaigners protesting against wind turbine tests. Waste disposal even more hazardous July 18th New controls implementing Landfill Directive requirements that ban the disposal of harzardous and non-hazardous waste together in the same landfill are now in place. Unruly sheep face nuisance bans July 15th Anti-social behaviour orders designed to crack down on teenage tearaways and unruly neighbours may soon be used against shepherds and their sheep. Annual rural proofing report July 13th The Government’s plans to devolve decision making and delivery of programmes closer to the ground makes ‘rural proofing’ at a local level critical to the well-being of England’s rural communities and businesses, according to the Countryside Agency. Rural crime perceived to be on the increase July 13th Country people’s perception is that rural crime is on the increase, despite the fact that national statistics indicate an overall fall in crime rates. New Countryside Code launched today July 12th A new Countryside Code to update the original 1950s’ country code and help prepare everyone for the introduction of the public’s new right of access¹ to the countryside is launched today by the Countryside Agency Drinkers served up health checks July 11th Drinkers are to be offered a health check when they pop into their local village pub for a pint. Village schools win reprieve July 10th Two Powys rural schools threatened with closure months ago are finally saved by councillors. Farm workers’ rates to rise July 9th Farm workers pay is to rise by an average of 5.1%, which is estimated will cost farmers’ £71m to implement. New Forest to be National Park July 8th The newest and most densely populated National Park is to be created in the New Forest in Hampshire and will be the eighth national park to be established in England since 1949. Surgery in church 'to stay open' July 7th Patients have succeeded in their campaign to keep open a village doctors' surgery, which is held in the back room of a church Outside the mysterious 'Site A' July 6th There used to be 15 proposed sites for asylum centres around the UK. Now there's just one, a fact which has left people living near the site wondering 'why us?' Some rural parents go hungry to feed children July 5th Half of all parents (46 per cent) on a low income have gone short of food over the last year to feed someone else in their family and mothers and fathers in rural areas often face a tougher time than those in urban areas, reveals a survey by the children’s charity NCH Village row over horse fair plan July 4th Residents and business owners protest against a horse fair organised in their village without consulting them. Village store is new 'cop shop' July 3th A civilian community police officer holds his Saturday advice surgery in a shop for the first time. Village fights to keep free water July 1st Four villagers in Gwynedd fight for the right to get their water for nothing - an arrangement dating back nearly 100 years.