MORE than 80 landowners, farmers and rural business figures turned out to debate the pros and cons of the proposed extension of the Lake District and Yorkshire Dales national parks.

The event at the Westmorland Hotel, Tebay, was organised by the CLA allowing people in local agriculture to quiz representatives from Natural England, the Yorkshire Dales and the CLA itself, on the effect any changes would have to their lives.

CLA Cumbria Chairman Charles Ecroyd took a vote at the beginning of the meeting, and again after two hours of debate, those in favour increased from 8 to ten, and those against from 21 to 32 over the afternoon, with the rest either undecided or abstaining.

Douglas Chalmers, Director CLA North said: "We had a robust and honest debate. Natural England and the National Park Authorities felt their proposals had a fair hearing, and our Members believed that their concerns were raised and taken seriously."

"Our role was to give our members the best possible information. National Park designation will affect people in different ways, and by giving them access to the people who are driving the project, they will be far better placed to make their decisions. What is vital is that people respond to the consultation, otherwise they will have to live with the decision."

The CLA will be responding to the consultation, taking into account the feedback from this meeting and other comments from its members.

Consultation packs can be downloaded from www.lakestodaleslandscapes.org.uk or may be ordered from 0300 060 2178. The consultation ends on March 17.