§ Mr. HardyTo ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, how many prosecutions were carried out in respect of breaches of tree preservation orders in each of the last five years; and what assessment he had made as to the extent to which this mechanism is effective.
§ Sir Paul BeresfordInformation on the numbers of prosecutions in respect of breaches of tree preservation orders is not collected centrally. The effectiveness of this mechanism was considered as part of a wide-ranging review of tree preservation policies and legislation. The outcome, following public consultation, was announced by my hon. Friend the Minister for the Environment and Countryside in July last year. A number of changes are proposed to ensure that local authorities have adequate powers to bring effective action against abusers of the system. A paper setting out the Government's conclusions in more detail was placed in the Library of the House.