By LIAM MURPHY FISHING of the cockle beds on the Dee Estuary must be controlled to protect it for the future, an inspector has recommended.

By LIAM MURPHY DOG walkers on the beaches of West Wirral could be threatening the habitat of birds, environmentalists have warned. Every autumn and winter, many thousands of wading birds pass through the internationally-important Hoylake beach.

THE Dee Estuary is set to be given conservation status to protect its vulnerable wildlife, the Government announced last night. Biodiversity Minister Joan Ruddock yesterday submitted a bid to Europe to make the estuary, which separates Wirral from Wales, a Special Area of Conservation.

The Government yesterday moved to protect vulnerable wildlife and habitats in the Severn Dee and Humber estuaries by seeking to designate them Special Areas of Conservation.

The Government yesterday moved to protect vulnerable wildlife and habitats in the Severn Dee and Humber estuaries by seeking to designate them Special Areas of Conservation.