Audit Committee to discuss how to improve public access to Welsh countryside

The National Assembly’s Audit Committee will take evidence on public access to the countryside at its next meeting. Gareth Jones, the Welsh Assembly Government’s Head of Environment, Planning and Countryside, and Roger Thomas, Chief Executive of the Countryside Council for Wales, will address the meeting. In a report published earlier this month, the Auditor General for Wales said people are getting access to more areas of Welsh countryside, thanks to the successful implementation of the Countryside and Rights of Way Act 2000 (CROW). However, good practice needs to be shared more widely to encourage increased public use of the countryside. At the same meeting, the Committee will hear the Assembly Government’s response to its report on Merlin, the contract to provide ICT and business change services for the Assembly. The meeting takes place at 9.30am in Committee Room 3, Senedd, Cardiff Bay. Full details and an agenda