CPRE changes name and chairman

The Council for the Protection of Rural England (CPRE) has today (Wednesday) changed its name and emblem and also chosen a new chairman at its Annual General Meeting.

The countryside campaigner will now be known as the Campaign to Protect Rural England, to give itself a sharper, clearer identity.

Outgoing chairman Sir David Ford said: "A change to our name was overdue. We are no longer a council and it is important everyone understands that campaigning for the countryside is at the heart of our charity.

"I have been chairman for five years and there can have been few periods in the 77-year history of CPRE that have presented a greater challenge to us. The foot and mouth epidemic, the urban and rural green papers and the planning bill will all have a major impact on the English countryside."

Today's AGM, presided over by CPRE President Sir Max Hastings, was held to approve the annual review, appoint new officers and to discuss CPRE's campaigns and policies for 2004.