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The South Downs
On 12 th November 2009, Hilary Benn, Secretary of State for DEFRA signed the Designation Order for Britain's newest national park - at Ditchling, within the newly confirmed boundary (map courtesy of Natural England) for which we, with many others, have fought so long .
The Secretary of State paid generous tribute to the tireless work, over nearly 20 years, of the South Downs Campaign, a group of 160 local organisations of which CPRE Sussex has been a leading member, and singled out Maureen Holt (who edits our Review) for her tenacious and successful efforts to ensure that the Green Ridge (north of Brighton) was included.
We now look forward to the task of making sure we have the best national park we can – administered sensitively and responsively in the interests of visitors and local people alike.
The members of the new National Park Authority will be appointed and in post from April 2010. They will, over the following 12 months, agree how the National Park will be run and what its priorities should be, and take over from the South Downs Joint Committee (SDJC) in April 2011
CPRE Sussex is working closely with our colleagues in Hampshire, and other leading environmental organisations, to set up a consultative group to act as “critical friend” to the new Authority.
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