THE importance of market towns - and the D&S Times campaign to highlight their plight - has been acknowledged in government plans to revive the rural economy.

One hundred disadvantaged country towns will get £37m over three years and the Countryside Agency will champion market towns as a major policy initiative. With matching funding from Europe and elsewhere, it is hoped a market towns' regeneration programme could total £100m

Yesterday the Prime Minister, Mr Tony Blair, praised the D&S Times for its Market Town Revival campaign, launched in March this year.

"I'd like to congratulate the Darlington & Stockton Times on its campaign.

"It was a campaign which highlighted the importance of thriving, vibrant market towns to the health and strength of our country as a whole and rural life in particular. This week the Labour government showed that we listened."

The national market towns' initiative was announced as a key measure in the government's Rural White Paper, unveiled on Wednesday. The policy document also contained promises of more money for farm diversification, rural transport, post offices, health services and low-cost homes.

But Mr William Hague, Conservative leader and Richmond MP, said: "While the government is right to address issues facing market towns, it has only done so after campaigns by newspapers like the D&S. In reality Labour's White Paper does little to deal with the real crisis in the countryside and worse, Labour is deliberately trying to mislead people on the scope of the proposals."

The national market towns' initiative announced on Wednesday is based upon pioneering work carried out in Yorkshire by Yorkshire Forward, the regional development agency, and the Countryside Agency. Six towns, including Ripon and Malton, have been chosen for an initiative which aims to boost the local economies.

Mr Andy Tordoff, Yorkshire Forward's head of rural development, said: "Here in Yorkshire our organisation and the D&S Times have pioneered efforts to highlight the role market towns can play in regenerating rural areas.

"We welcome the government's announcement and we look forward to creating new partnerships with the support of the D&S Times to continue work already underway."

Countryside Agency chairman, Mr Ewen Cameron, is the new rural advocate with direct access to Cabinet ministers.

His organisation will work closely with other partners to provide health checks and "tool kits" to help market towns. It will also help rural communities prepare their own town and village plans, and provide new transport solutions.

Action for Market Towns has been campaigning on market town issues for three years. Its chief executive, Ms Linda Douglas, said: "Market towns matter: they are the backbone of the countryside.

"At last, the government has recognised the critical role market towns play in supporting country life. For years they have been the Cinderella of the countryside, ignored by both rural and urban regeneration schemes. But now the government is promising that market towns will no longer be overlooked by policy makers.

"Our members have been working hard to secure a future for their towns: some are doing very well but others need direct help."

The D&S Times launched the Market Town Revival campaign to help small towns compete against out-of-town shopping centres and highlight successful regeneration initiatives.

Mr Harry Tabiner, chief executive of Richmondshire District Council, said Richmond would be nominated for the market town initiative, because of work already done by Richmond Town Forum which employed a council-paid consultant to produce a report on the state of the town.

In Teesdale, Mr Charles Anderson, chief executive of the district council said it would be nominating Barnard Castle for special help.

l White Paper in full: page 19.

l Leading article: page 20.