Letter: Green in Wales: the facts

I CANNOT say if John Redwood, Secretary of State for Wales, is "batty" as referred to in "Redwood 'misled Commons' over plans to cut conservation in Wales" (14 May), but as personnel officer to the Countryside Council of Wales until March, I can add another angle to the article.

The CCW's budget was indeed cut, but should that be a surprise in view of cuts being applied in other areas of government spending?

Also, a reduction in staff numbers was put forward by Mr Redwood, but to be achieved over the next two financial years, ie by March 1997. This reduction could therefore be possible without redundancies, through staff leaving at the end of their fixed- term appointments.

Finally, since the CCW was set up four years ago, staff numbers have increased from 90 to 325. Have the CCW's statutory obligations increased by a similar percentage? Perhaps Geoffrey Lean could advise us.

B K Bartlett

Bangor

Gwynedd