ENVIRONMENT Secretary Elizabeth Truss has announced the expansion of the Yorkshire Dales and the Lake District National Parks.

But the decision was immediately criticised by the Country Land and Business Association (CLA) who fear national park planning rules and regulations could stifle rural enterprise in the new areas.

The extensions will see the two Parks virtually joined with the Yorkshire Dales growing by almost 24 per cent and the Lake District by three per cent.

Mrs Truss made the announcement while visiting the Wensleydale Creamery in Hawes on Friday of last week. She said: "The Dales and the Lakes have some of our country’s finest landscapes, beautiful vistas and exciting wildlife. They are part of our national identity.

"I am delighted to be able to announce this extension which will join these two unique National Parks and protect even more space for generations to come."

Fiona Howie, Campaign for National Parks chief executive, said it was "absolutely fantastic" news.

"Very simply, these are beautiful, inspiring and important areas of the countryside that always deserved to be part of our National Parks," she said.

"They were originally excluded because of administrative reasons but now, after years of hard work by a lot of people, this is going to be put right."

Mrs Truss made the decision after taking into account the recommendations put forward by the Planning Inspector in October 2013 following a public inquiry. The extension areas will come under the National Parks governance from August 1 next year.

However Dorothy Fairburn, the CLA's North regional director, said: “We share the ambitions of boosting rural growth and caring for our landscapes, but we are clear that the flexibility for change – which is critical for a modern, working countryside – should not be stifled.

"We are disappointed that the Public Inquiry and the Secretary of State appear to have ignored the views of many of our members who own and manage over 100,000 acres of land affected by this decision, and who also run many rurally-based businesses, some of which are involved in the visitor economy.

"Our members take their stewardship of the land seriously and responsibly, demonstrating high quality conservation and public benefits that run hand in hand with their commercial farming and forestry management.

"Draconian planning rules and other regulations in national parks can stifle rural enterprise, ultimately at the expense of people who derive their living from the land, and this is very worrying.

"This area is largely a man made landscape and we call on the park authorities to now work in partnership with rural businesses to help them prosper and benefit, rather than suffer from the new designation."

An additional 188 square miles of land across Cumbria and a small part of Lancashire will come under the new designation.

In the Lake District this includes an area from Birkbeck Fells Common to Whinfell Common; an area from Helsington Barrows to Sizergh Fell, an area north of Sizergh Castle and part of the Lyth valley.

In the Yorkshire Dales it includes parts of the Orton Fells, the northern Howgill Fells, Wild Boar Fell and Mallerstang; Barbon, Middleton, Casterton and Leck Fells; the River Lune and part of Firbank Fell, and other fells to the west of the River Lune.