The BBC's Margaret Gilmore reports on the parks controversy

The special protection status for the two areas follows years of campaigning by environmental lobby groups.

They had warned rare habitats for birds, animals and insects were being destroyed by intensive farming and development.

John Prescott was inspired by childhood visits to the Lake District

Mr Prescott told his party's Bournemouth conference his pledge "is a birthday present from Labour to the youth of this country".

He recalled his own childhood visits to the Lake District, "the jewel of our countryside, whose sheer wonder and beauty fired my passion to make it available to all in society".

He declared: "Fifty years on, I am privileged to begin the process of creating new national parks for the new millennium."

Mixed response

But plans to turn the South Downs into a national park have been greeted with a mixture of delight and fury by councils and countryside bodies.

While most said they believed the new status would give the Downs much-needed protection from overdevelopment, some said it would boost visitor numbers causing traffic gridlock and possible erosion.

Many were unhappy about planning decisions being taken out of local hands.

Ponies roam wild in the New Forest

Tory Peter Bottomley, MP for Worthing West, said: "This decision is not welcome in Sussex. Nearly every local authority, 14 in all, asked John Prescott, not to create a National Park.

"Democratic representatives at county and local level wanted a conservation board that would be more democratic and better for the South Downs."

Graham Forshaw, leader of West Sussex County Council, said he and fellow councillors would "fight vigorously" against the plan.

He protested: "A national park would be a disaster for local people because it would be taking the Downs out of local control.

"We are advocating a new, locally-agreed, authority to protect this precious landscape."

Concerns were also voiced by some campaigners in the New Forest, famous for its wild pony population.

Dr Julian Lewis, Tory MP for New Forest East, said the area was already under "significant pressure" from the volume of visitor numbers, which could be increased by the new status.

Wildlife enthusiasm

But Dr Simon Lyster, director general of The Wildlife Trusts, said: "The South Downs and New Forest include incredibly rich areas for wildlife, and in nature conservation terms both are of the highest international importance.

"The Wildlife Trusts therefore welcomes the Government's proposals for them to enjoy national park status.

Wildlife groups say national park status will help to protect rare species

"This will undoubtedly strengthen the management of these areas and provide better mechanisms for conserving and enhancing their wildlife habitats."

Friends of the Earth executive director Tony Juniper also welcomed the announcement.

He said: "This is an important achievement on the national parks already in the north and west of the country.

"It's high time the South East had some better, open, protected land. This announcement will provide that and we congratulate the Government for it."

Ramblers' Association spokeswoman, Kate Ashbrook, said: "Both the New Forest and South Downs are in desperate need of the extra environmental protection that comes from national park status and the economies of the local areas will get a much-needed boost."

Millennium villages

Mr Prescott also announced he was inviting proposals for an additional five Millennium Villages, built to the "highest environmental standards".

Under current plans, one is being set up near the Millennium Dome in Greenwich, south-east London, and another at the mining town of Allerton Bywater, in West Yorkshire.

The Deputy Prime Minister said having a further five would "point the way for a new style of living in Britain".