§ Mr. Newensasked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what steps he is taking to encourage the protection of Great Britain's remaining elm trees and to prevent the destruction of other trees.
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§ Mr. StrangThe Forestry Commission advises local authorities to carry out sanitation felling of diseased elms in selected areas where this action is practical and is likely to be effective in slowing down the spread of Dutch elm disease. No means has yet been found of eradicating the disease or immunising individual trees against it, but by the action advised it is hoped that mature, unaffected elm populations can, in part, be conserved for a longer period. Among other advantages, this would allow replanting schemes using different species to be planned and for new trees to be established.
The Commission and private woodland owners take routine protective measures to prevent or treat other tree pests and diseases, and controls on wood imports are currently in force to prevent the entry of non-indigenous pests and diseases. The latter will be strengthened when the EEC plant health directive is implemented on 1 September this year.