British rural folk told to be nice

[T_i_B]

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2005/07/13/nrural13.xml&sSheet=/portal/2005/07/13/ixportal.html

Being less rude to people from ethnic minorities, the disabled and the young could help those living in the countryside to make more money out of them, a study said yesterday. Research for the Countryside Agency found that members of ethnic minorities regarded rural dwellers as older, wealthier, more traditional and conservative than city people.

Rural people wanted to preserve their way of life and were more resistant to change than city dwellers, according to two reports, costing £360,000, which were commissioned as a result of a 2000 White Paper which committed the Government to 'increasing and diversifying enjoyment of the countryside".

The lack of contact between rural white communities and urban ethnic minorities was thought to result in racial stereotyping, mutual distrust and, in some cases, "plain racism", according to the report.

For many of the disabled, the countryside also had negative associations.