§ Lord DAVIES of LEEKMy Lords, I beg leave to ask the Question which stands in my name on the Order Paper.
The Question was as follows:
To ask Her Majesty's Government whether they are aware that—
and what action the Government are taking to limit this ruthless destruction of our hedgerows.
- (a) in East Anglia, between 1960 and 1966, 10,000 miles of hedgerow were destroyed each year, thus causing soil erosion; and
- (b) in the West Country, grazing systems are being created by replacing hedgerows with wire fences;
§ Lord STRABOLGIMy Lords, over the past century there has been a trend towards the enlargement of smaller fields to improve farm management. In 1970, the Nature Conservancy estimated that since 1946 an annual average of 2,000 miles of hedgerow had been lost in Eastern England out of a national loss of 4,500 miles annually. From studies carried out by the Ministry of Agriculture, it has been concluded that well-grown hedgerows may reduce soil erosion for distances up to about 15 times their height: but the typical farm hedge is rarely a sufficient insurance against erosion in the most vulnerable fenlands and supplementary cultural measures are normally necessary. Farmers are advised to retain hedges unless they are a real handicap to efficient farming.
§ Lord DAVIES of LEEKMy Lords, I thank my noble friend for what I consider to be a constructive Answer. May I ask him whether he is aware that some 1452 kindly noble Lords, most of them on the opposite side of the House, whose ancestors helped to preserve the beauty of England, have written to me, and, while the spirit is willing, they find the flesh weak on this issue of hedgerows? Is my noble friend aware that, apparently, farmers need not make application when they grub out a hedge and that while grassland may not need hedges, the hedgerows of England are twice the size of our nature reserves? While one noble Earl wants to protect the badger, I want to protect my friend the hedgehog, which my grandfather showed me how to cook. Can my noble friend tell me whether any regulations are in force under which farmers have to ask permission before grubbing out their hedges?
§ Lord STRABOLGIMy Lords, the Government have no statutory power of control over hedgerow removal, but local planning authorities have power to make tree preservation orders in the interests of amenity, and where an order is made on hedgerow trees this may, in practice, have the effect of protecting the hedgerow as well. The Government are very conscious of the loss of hedgerows, but on the other hand I think one must put this into perspective. The national reserve is about 600,000 miles, and about 100,000 miles have been lost since the war. I think we must remember that this is a fairly small amount and it is diminishing every year.
§ Lord LEATHERLANDMy Lords, apart from the fact that cutting down takes the fun out of fox hunting, can my noble friend give us figures showing how many extra bushels of wheat and barley, and how many extra tons of sugar beet per acre, are grown when hedgerows are cut down?
§ Lord STRABOLGIMy Lords, not without notice.
§ Lord CARRINGTONMy Lords, would the noble Lord not agree that with the loss of the hedgerows and the incidence of elm disease, particularly in the Midlands, the whole face of the English countryside is going to change? Would it not be a good thing for the Government to inquire whether it is possible to devise some system whereby landowners and farmers are encouraged to plant trees, if not in hedgerows, in copses and in places which could be landscaped into the countryside?
§ Lord STRABOLGIYes, my Lords, the Government are conscious of this. The Countryside Commission recently produced a report called New Agricultural Landscapes, and the accompanying discussion paper also covered the whole question of landscape cover, including hedgerows. When the Commission puts forward recommendations on the subject, the Government will consider them. With regard to East Anglia, the subject of part of my noble friend's original Question, the strategic team also recorded concern in their report at many of the agricultural methods employed, including the removal of hedgerows. This report is coming before a Select Committee in the other place in the autumn.
Earl FERRERSMy Lords, would the noble Lord agree that it is the smallest fields which have the largest preponderance of hedges, and that the majority of the figures which the noble Lord mentioned have come about by making smaller fields into more economical fields, and not by making large fields into vast fields?
§ Lord STRABOLGIMy Lords, the Ministry of Agriculture advise against the creation of excessively large fields and the removal of boundary hedges. Farmers are encouraged to retain hedges unless they are a real handicap to efficient farming. The effect varies according to the circumstances but, in suitable cases, the removal of hedgerows can increase yields and reduce costs. It is a question of balance.
§ Lord SOMERSMy Lords, would the noble Lord not agree that there is another side to this matter? Is he aware that hedges are the natural habitat of many wild species which, without hedges, would become extinct?
§ Lord STRABOLGIYes, my Lords, we are conscious of that. We always take into account the desirability of conserving natural beauty and the amenities of the countryside. The hedges, of which I am very fond, are very much part of the English scene. Most of them date only from the enclosure period of the 18th century.
§ Lord SLATERMy Lords, is my noble friend aware that successive Governments have been the greatest enemy so far as the hedgerows are concerned, 1454 because they have had them removed in order to give us our highway system.
§ Lord STRABOLGIYes, my Lords. This is a problem. There are points for and against hedgerows alongside roads. One disadvantage is the fact that they encourage snow to collect and it is more difficult to remove. They are also liable to damage from salt which is spread on the road.
§ Lord SEGALMy Lords, as the hedgerows on the mainland of Europe are conspicuous by their absence, is this not one further example of where erosion by the Common Market ought to be resisted?