HC Deb 15 July 1985 vol 83 cc36-7W
Mr. Hardy

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland when officials of the Forestry Commission last met at a national level representatives of (a) the Council for the Protection of Rural England, (b) the Royal Society for Nature Conservation and (c) the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds, to discuss forestry matters of mutual interest; and when they next propose to do so.

Mr. John MacKay

Forestry Commission officials met representativew of these organisations at the broadleaves seminar held on 8 May 1985. The Royal Society for Nature Conservation and the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds were also represented at a meeting between the commission and Wildlife Link on 17 June 1985. Further meetings are expected to be held in the course of the next two months.

Mr. Hardy

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland when representatives of the Forestry Commission last met at a national level staff of the Nature Conservancy Council to discuss general forestry matters of mutual interest; and when they next propose to do so.

Mr. John MacKay

Officers from Forestry Commission headquarters have had a number of meetings over the past year with their counterparts in the Nature Conservancy Council to discuss particular topics. Formal meetings are held each year at national level in England and Scotland, and more frequently at regional level in Wales, to discuss a range of issues of mutual interest. The last such meeting at a national level took place in November 1984 and the next is planned for September 1985.

Mr. Hardy

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland when the chairman or director general of the Forestry Commission last met the chairman or director general of (a) the Nature Conservancy Council, (b) the Country Commission, (c) the Countryside Commission for Scotland, (d) the Council for the Protection of Rural England, (e) the Royal Society for Nature Conservation and (f) the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds, to discuss forestry matters of mutual interest.

Mr. John MacKay

The chairman of the Forestry Commission is frequently in contact with the chairmen of the Nature Conservancy Council, the Countryside Commission and the Countryside Commission for Scotland. They met together on a formal basis last November to discuss a range of issues of mutual interest. The director general of the Forestry Commission met the general secretary of the Royal Society for Nature Conservation in March of this year. No such meeting has taken place recently with the Council for the Protection of Rural England or with the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds, though the director general expects to visit the headquarters of the RSPB later this year.