HL Deb 26 January 1977 vol 379 cc619-20WA
Lord CHELWOOD

asked Her Majesty's Government:

What is their estimate of the numbers employed by owners of private forestry schemes at the latest available date, and the number employed on 1st January 1972.

Lord STRABOLGI

There are no reliable figures for the numbers employed in the private sector of the forestry industry.

Lord CHELWOOD

asked Her Majesty's Government:

By what percentage they estimate the total planting of private forestry schemes was up or down in each of the last five years compared with the average of the previous five years; and what impact this has had on the numbers employed in the private forestry sector.

Lord STRABOLGI

The following table shows planting in the private sector for which Forestry Commission grants were paid during the years in question, expressed as a percentage of the average annual planting for the five years ending on 31st March 1971:

Year ending
31st March Percentage
1972 155
1973 153
1974 147
1975 137
1976 79

No reliable figures are available for the numbers employed in the private sector of the forestry industry, or the impact of planting fluctuations on them.