§ Mr. Kennedyasked the Secretary of State for Scotland what comparisons he can provide between the average sale price per acre of Forestry Commission assets sold to the private market with those sold in smaller quantities to nearby or neighbouring tenants.
§ Mr. John MacKayNo meaningful comparisons can be drawn because of the wide variety of properties sold. However, it is generally the case that, irrespective of the nature of the sale, smaller areas attract a higher price per acre.
§ Mr. Kennedyasked the Secretary of State for Scotland whether he will include in all future disposal agreements for forestry a clause which makes public the relevant financial arrangements.
§ Mr. John MacKayNo. This would be a departure from normal practice.
§ Mr. Kennedyasked the Secretary of State for Scotland what are the comparative proportions of the revenue raised from the disposal of Forestry Commission assets in Scotland which have been used for (a) reinvestment in forestry development in Scotland and (b) direct payment into the Consolidated Fund.
§ Mr. John MacKayAll revenue raised from the Forestry Commission's disposals programme is transferred into the Consolidated Fund. As shown in the commission's annual report and accounts public funding of forestry greatly exceeds the revenue from such disposals.
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§ Mr. Kennedyasked the Secretary of State for Scotland what action he took, prior to the sale of the Forestry Commission holdings at Swordale and Foulis Woods, Ross-shire, to inquire of the purchasers whether they intended to resell the asset.
§ Mr. John MacKayNone.
§ Mr. Kennedyasked the Secretary of State for Scotland whether he is satisfied that, when the Forestry Commission disposed of its holdings at Swordale and Foulis Woods, Ross-shire, it took due account of his criterion laid down to the commission that any such sales should include procedures for "offer back" to farmer owners in appropriate areas selected for disposal.
§ Mr. John MacKayI am satisfied that the commission took full account of the offer back procedures. In the sale of Swordale and Foulis Woods, the former owner had no rights under these procedures as the land had been acquired more than 25 years ago and had also materially changed in character.
§ Mr. Kennedyasked the Secretary of State for Scotland whether he is satisfied that the sale of the Forestry Commission holdings at Swordale and Foulis Woods, Ross-shire, met his criterion laid down to the commission of any such sales having to be fully in accordance with the principles of public accountability.
§ Mr. John MacKayYes. These properties were sold on the open market after extensive advertising, and the price received was in excess of the reserve price.
§ Mr. Kennedyasked the Secretary of State for Scotland if he will provide a full breakdown of the Forestry Commission assets which have been disposed of since May 1979 within each of the regions of Scotland; and if he will express this amount as a percentage of the total Forestry Commission holdings at May 1979 in (a) each region within Scotland, and (b) Scotland as a whole.
§ Mr. John MacKayInformation on Forestry Commission land sales prior to the passing of the Forestry Act 1981–27 July 1981—and on sales of non-forested land since that date has not been maintained centrally and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.
As regards plantation sales since 27 July 1981, I refer the hon. Member to the reply given by my hon. Friend the Parliamentary Secretary to the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food to the hon. Member for Isle of Wight (Mr. Ross) on 17 January 1984, at columns 168–82, which listed plantations sold by the Forestry Commission between the passing of the Forestry Act 1981 and 21 November 1983.
From 22 November 1983 until 31 March 1984—the latest date for which information is available—further sales of plantations have taken place in Scotland as shown in the following table.
The Scottish plantations sold —4,410 hectares —represent 2.8 per cent. of the woodland managed by the Forestry Commission in Scotland as at 31 March 1981. A number of Forestry Commission forests spar regional boundaries and similar information by regions could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.
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Plantations sold in Scotland between 22 November 1983 and 31 March 1984
Names of Property Region Littleburn Nursery Highland Corrour—Deer Forest Highland Land at Knockbain School House Highland Land adjoining Loch Lochy at Laggan Locks Highland Glenmazeran Highland Plantations at Helmsdale (Lots 1 and 5) Highland Redhall Grampian Banchory (part) Grampian Borehole Development, Burghead Grampian Castlehill Grampian Road Improvement at Tyrebagger Grampian Mearns Package (Lots 2 and 5) Grampian Easter Clune Grampian Keillour Tayside Redgorton (Pitmuchtly) Tayside Denmarkfield North and South Tayside Cruach (Black Corries) Tayside Kennet Woods Fife Blackwood Head Strathclyde Carmocoup & Penbreck Strathclyde Broadmeadows Borders Whitslade (part) Borders Portmore: Sheephouse Wood Borders School Wood Dumfries & Galloway Upper Dullerg Dumfries & Galloway Fordie Tayside Easter Poldar III Central Bermere Island etc Strathclyde Barr Hill Jura (Craighouse & Sannaig) (part) Spion Kop Strathclyde Castleton Woodlands Strathclyde Peers Strathclyde Church Plantation Strathclyde Rosneath (North) Strathclyde
§ Mr. Kennedyasked the Secretary of State for Scotland if he is satisfied that, when considering the disposal of its holdings at Swordale and Foulis Woods, Ross-shire, the Forestry Commission took into account his criteria laid down to it of "market preferences"; and if he will make a statement.
§ Mr. John MacKayYes. Market preference was included in the various criteria taken into account before the decision was taken to sell Swordale and Foulis Woods.
§ Mr. Kennedyasked the Secretary of State for Scotland if, when the Forestry Commission is considering the disposal of assets in line with Government policy, it takes into account applications for purchase for smaller sections of land to be sold from neighbouring tenants.
§ Mr. John MacKayYes. All such applications are carefully considered. The commission has also to decide, however, whether selling a property in one lot would be likely to produce a higher price overall.
§ Mr. Kennedyasked the Secretary of State for Scotland if, after the Forestry Commission has disposed of its assets in any particular area, his Department retains a facility to monitor the subsequent resale of the asset to other private interests.
§ Mr. John MacKayAny subsequent resale is entirely a matter for the new owner.
§ Mr. Kennedyasked the Secretary of State for Scotland if there was any difference between the price per acre quoted to individual neighbouring tenants and the actual 132W sale price per acre to Fountain Forestry Limited when the Forestry Commission disposed of 1,670 acres of holding at Swordale and Foulis Woods in Ross-shire.
§ Mr. John MacKayYes. Sale prices per acre for particular areas mentioned during early discussions with neighbours were higher than the guide prices per acre subsequently given to prospective purchasers of the entire property and the actual average sale price per acre obtained. This reflected the fact that neighbours had expressed interest in purchasing only small, specific parts of the property. In the event, these local inquiries were not pursued because any sales resulting from them would have caused roading and access complications for the sale of the property as a whole.
§ Mr. Kennedyasked the Secretary of State for Scotland to what extent, and in which specific instances of Forestry Commission asset disposal, he has been consulted by the commission over potentially significant aggregate sales to foreign or multinational buyers.
§ Mr. John MacKayThe Forestry Commission has not identified any significant aggregation of sales to foreign or multinational buyers.
§ Mr. Kennedyasked the Secretary of State for Scotland what was the sale price per acre of the Forestry Commission holdings at Swordale and Foulis Woods, Ross-shire, when such assets were disposed of to the private market.
§ Mr. John MacKayAs has previously been explained to the House, it is not the normal practice to announce the prices obtained from the sales of individual Forestry Commission properties.