MPs urged to oppose sale of forests

The plans for the sell-off have proved highly controversial, with MPs reporting being deluged with correspondence expressing concern over the measures.

Although “heritage” woodland like the New Forest and Forest of Dean will be handed over to charitable trusts supported by Government funding, concern has centred on the possibility of selling off thousands of hectares of other Forestry Commission woodland on long leases.

The Government insists that by maintaining the freehold to forests it would be able to preserve rights of way for walkers and cyclists and sources accuse Labour of “deliberately muddying the waters” between the heritage sites and the other woodland.

But Labour has secured a debate on the plans today and Shadow Environment Secretary Mary Creagh has written to Tory and Liberal Democrat MPs with publicly-owned woodland in their constituencies urging them to take a stand against the sell-off. York Outer’s Julian Sturdy, Thirsk and Malton’s Anne McIntosh, Scarborough’s Robert Goodwill and Richmond MP William Hague, the Foreign Secretary, are among those to receive the letter.

“Our public forests and woodlands are a precious part of our national heritage. In recent weeks there has been huge public concern about the Government’s proposals to sell off England’s forests,” said Ms Creagh, MP for Wakefield.

“These fears have not been allayed by the Government’s recent consultation paper which has failed to provide reassurances about the scale of the sell-off or protections for public access. The Public Bodies Bill is already making its way through Parliament. It will pave the way for the complete sell-off of the English Forestry Estate.

“The wholesale sell-off of England’s forests now proposed by your Government was not mentioned in either party’s general election manifesto, or the coalition agreement. There is no political mandate for such a sale.”

Ministers say the changes are necessary because the Government does not need to be involved in forest management and the Forestry Commission has a conflict of interests, given it also regulates the timber industry.

Government sources insist there has been huge “misinformation” over the plans and reject accusations that they are selling off swathes of valued woodland.

Apart from the heritage forests. communities will be given first chance to bid for leases on other woodland which they could then run. If no community bid is forthcoming or is not deemed acceptable, leases will be offered to commercial operators although restrictions will be imposed.

However there are concerns over how community groups or charities will fund the upkeep of areas of woodland and whether the safeguards will be strong enough.

Ms Creagh has written to 37 Tory MPs and five Liberal Democrats who have more than 1,000 hectares of public forestry land in their constituency and urges them to back Labour in the debate this afternoon.

A serious rebellion is highly unlikely, although some coalition MPs are critical of the policy.

A junior member of the Government told the Yorkshire Post they feared Ministers were picking the wrong fight given savings are expected to be £250m at most, while David Cameron’s parliamentary aide, Desmond Swayne, has revealed he has received a “torrent of hostile emails”.

Sale ‘would have catastrophic effect on horse riders: Page 20.