To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what further plans he has for improving nature conservation in Scotland.

The Environmental Protection Bill now before Parliament provides, inter alia, for the establishment of a Nature Conservancy Council for Scotland. We propose to establish, by subsequent legislation, a natural heritage agency which will merge the Nature Conservancy Council for Scotland with the Countryside Commission for Scotland. This will ensure a co-ordinated, integrated and sensitive approach to nature conservation and countryside issues in Scotland.