§ Mr. Ron Daviesasked the Secretary of State for Scotland if he is satisfied that the membership of the Forestry Commission's new regional advisory committees adequately represents the degree of environmental interest in forestry matters.
§ Mr. John MacKayThere is a place on each regional advisory committee allocated to a member representing the environmental interest. It is difficult, because of statutory constraints on numbers and membership, to extend the environmental representation at this stage. However, as announced on 31 January 1985 by my hon. Friend the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for the Environment, in his response to the Countryside Commission's report "A Better Future for the Uplands", in columns 282–90, the Forestry Commission is looking at ways of achieving greater public accountability for the regional advisory committees. This might go some way towards compensating for the present constraints on the committees' membership.
§ Mr. Wallaceasked the Secretary of State for Scotland if he will make a statement on the progress of the Forestry Commission's examination into ways of achieving greater public accountability in its regional advisory committees as announced in the Government's response to the Countryside Commission's report on the uplands.
§ Mr. MacKayThe Forestry Commission's consideration of this matter is still at an early stage and my right hon. Friend is not yet in a position to make a statement.