Historic Monuments (Hansard, 24 October 1989)

The sums spent are in the table.

simplify the criteria. In bringing forward these proposals I have consulted both the Countryside Commission for Scotland and the Nature Conservancy Council.

There is a continuing need to retain in agriculture prime quality land, which is in general too scarce and important a resource in Scotland to be put to any other use, and to protect the land necessary to maintain a thriving hill sheep farming industry to underpin the economy of the hill areas. In the present situation, however, there is not generally so pressing a need to preserve other land for agricultural use and I am in particular willing in appropriate circumstances to support the release for forestry planting of non-prime arable land—that is, land falling within classes 3.2 and 4 of the land capability classification for agriculture—where such planting could play an important part in reducing agricultural surpluses, and bring significant environmental benefits.

Applications under the Forestry Commission's woodland grant scheme and the commission's own proposed land acquisitions will continue to be considered on their merits through the usual procedures for consultation between the commission and other interested authorities. To simplify the criteria for the release of agricultural land 401W for forestry planting, a single threshold of 40 hectares has been set for consultation with my Department. Consultation will not be required for planting applications in respect of areas of land falling below this threshold except in the following cases: applications relating to prime quality agricultural land, for that is, land falling within classes 1, 2 and 3.1 of the land capability classification for agriculture, and to specifically identified areas where the scope for afforestation has to be severely constrained to ensure that the hill sheep industry continues to thrive. In these cases my Department will apply a general presumption against release of the land for forestry planting. Separate applications for areas of land of less than 40 hectares submitted either simultaneously or consecutively and relating to the same agricultural unit, which together exceed 40 hectares. Applications relating to areas of land in respect of which agricultural grant has been paid within the previous two years where consultation is necessary to ensure that there is no conflict between the requirements of the relevant agricultural grant scheme and the planting proposals. For the same reason consultation will also be necessary in relation to land which is the subject of a conservation agreement under the environmentally sensitive area scheme (ESA). The Forestry Commission will continue generally to take account of the special status of ESAs in considering applications within the designated areas.

The requirement for consultation on all applications in these categories does not, however, necessarily imply that objections to the planting proposals involved will be raised on agricultural grounds. There will otherwise be a general presumption in favour of the release of agricultural land for forestry planting. This means that the Department will have to demonstrate that the presumption in favour of release should not apply in any particular case where a planting proposal is regarded as being unacceptable on agricultural grounds, for instance because release of the land involved would undermine the agricultural structure of the area.

A map, copies of which have been placed in the Library of the House, is being made available to interested parties showing the areas of hill sheep land and of prime quality agricultural land where a general presumption against release for forestry planting will apply; the map also shows the boundaries of the Scottish ESAs. The location of the prime quality agricultural land in Scotland can be found in greater detail, in maps produced by the Macaulay land use research institute.

I have also taken the opportunity to revise the procedures for carrying out assessments of planting proposals to reduce the time taken to deal with applications.

I hope that these changes in criteria and procedures will result in a better understanding of the circumstances in which agricultural land will be released for forestry planting and will help to promote an increase in the levels of new planting in areas where this can be accommodated without detriment to, and in many cases with positive benefit for, the environment.