Dr. Helen Sheridan:

Yes, but first I will deal with the other question in respect of the REPS and AEOS programmes. They have been in place and they have done a good deal. However, participation in the schemes was not mandatory; farmers did not have to go into them. The work we undertook was across the board and not necessarily on farms involved in agri-environment schemes.

Reference was made to the quality of the hedgerows. If we are going to extend their lifespan then we have to intervene because hedgerows have a limited lifespan if we do not intervene. This may involved coppicing, implanting etc. The decision will be on whether we do that or whether we base a marketing campaign around having all of these habitats in place. If we do that, then we must ensure the habitats included in any marketing campaign are of good ecological quality and not simply dying-out gappy hedgerows.