asked the Secretary of State for the Environment when guidance notes on the implementation of section 48 of the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 for the Nature Conservancy Council, Countryside Commission, water authorities and internal drainage boards will be published.

The guidance notes are being prepared as quickly as possible by officials of my Department, the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food and the Welsh Office, in consultation with other interested parties, to whom a draft has already been circulated for comments. It is hoped to issue the final version in the summer.