ABSTRACT
In Chapters 7 and 8 we looked at the rôle of middle-class action groups in preventing unwanted development in their immediate localities. What was common to these two cases was that both developments impinged overtly on settlements and thus mobilized opposition from large numbers of residents. However, much of the diversification of the rural economy takes place on farms in more low-key developments than those we have so far examined and clearly not all development proposals lead to the formation of action groups. This is not to say, however, that the influence of middle-class residents is exercised merely through direct action. As we saw in Chapter 1, middle-class groups have generally been regarded as very adept at influencing the forward plan-making process. We do not intend to present here an analysis of middle-class involvement in development plan making; instead we wish to focus on the ways in which putting the plans into operation can lead to a curtailment of certain (industrial) activities which are not deemed fit for the new rural spaces. We will show how certain actors in rural areas find their attempts to diversify the economy and their room for manoeuvre, limited by the implementation of development plans.
