The Deputy will be aware that I view the conservation management plans for special areas of conservation and special protected areas for birds, and the public consultation process in particular, as a central part of the system for informing the public and for maintaining the favourable conservation status of these sites in the long-term.
Conservation management plans will not be finalised until after public consultations with landowners and all interested parties are completed. The objective of undertaking this process is to maximise the effectiveness of the plans and to ensure their full implementation.
As at March 2002 there are 243 SAC plans and 98 SPA plans at various stages of completion. There is some overlap between the two as some SPAs are contained within SACs. Out of a total of 341 plans, 296 draft plans have reached the stage of being ready to progress to public consultation. Public consultation is already under way in the case of 24 of these plans.