HC Deb 04 August 1975 vol 897 c50W
Mr. Cormack

asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food, how much (a) agricultural land and (b) woodland has been lost as a result of urban development in each of the years 1960 to 1974, inclusive.

Mr. Strang

Land lost from agricultural use in England and Wales to urban, industrial and recreational development, is estimated to average over five-year periods for the 10 years to 1973:

Thousand acres
1958–59 to 1962–63 34.6
1959–60 to 1963–64 36.5
1960–61 to 1964–65 44.9
1961–62 to 1965–66 37.8
1962–63 to 1966–67 42.8
1963–64 to 1967–68 43.1
1964–65 to 1968–69 41.5
1965–66 to 1969–70 41.6
1966–67 to 1970–71 39.6
1967–68 to 1971–72 38.0
1968–69 to 1972–73 40.6

Information for 1973–74 and 1974–75 not yet available. No information is available on losses of woodland to urban development.

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