asked the Secretary of State for Wales what arrangements exist for contact between his Department's Directorate of Rural Affairs and the Department of the Environment; and to what extent the directorate carries out work which overlaps with that of the Development Board for Rural Wales.

The divisions concerned with rural questions within the Welsh Office are in close and frequent contact with the Department of the Environment, including its Directorate of Rural Affairs, as well as with those other Departments responsible for matching aspects of rural affairs in England. There is no duplication with the work of the Development Board for Rural Wales.