In November 2000 the Government promised to build 1,600 affordable dwellings a year specifically to benefit settlements of fewer than 3,000 people. Four years on these targets have not been achieved and the Government is considering scrapping them. The Countryside Alliance is concerned that, whilst the lack of affordable housing has rightly been identified as a major stumbling block to rural regeneration, fewer affordable houses are being built now than in 1997. Meanwhile more people than ever are migrating to rural areas. Fewer affordable homes coupled with increasing housing needs mean that the cost of housing for rural families will continue to climb.

The Countryside Alliance considers that the State of the Countryside Report 2004 is a fair reflection of many ongoing rural problems, but the Government must pay attention to its Agency's assessment. The long overdue 'refreshed rural strategy' must offer realistic solutions or rural communities will continue to be under threat.