Timber Procurement (Hansard, 9 January 2002)

§ Mr. Peter Ainsworth
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what recent measures she has taken to ensure that the Government procure only sustainable and legally felled timber. [8285]

§ Margaret Beckett
[holding answer 18 December 2001]My right hon. Friend the Minister for the Environment announced to Parliament on 28 July 2000,Official Report, columns 947–48W, that central Government Departments and their agencies were committed to actively seeking to buy timber and timber products from sustainable and legal sources. In January 2001 the Office of Government Commerce wrote to departmental Heads of Procurement to confirm this policy. Departments have been asked to report annually on their timber purchases and the recent Greening Government report for the financial year 2000–01 includes a summary of the responses received. My Department, on behalf of an interdepartmental working group on timber procurement, has commissioned a study on the scale of central Government's timber requirements and the options available for developing the most effective implementation of this policy. An interim report is due to be published at the end of February 2002 with a final report due at the end of May 2002. My Department has consulted the Timber Trade Federation and environmental NGOs in pursuit of the Government's timber procurement policy and has been raising awareness among Departments and the wider public sector. In May 2001 a timber procurement workshop was held at the Greening Public Procurement conference organised by the Department of the Environment, Transport and the Regions and attended by a cross-section of the public 905W sector. In October 2001 my Department gave a presentation at the local government's Central Buying Consortium conference and took that opportunity to promote the purchase of sustainable and legally harvested timber. Recently my right hon. Friend the Minister for the Environment has met the Timber Trade Federation to discuss implementation of the Government's timber procurement policy and he addressed a wide cross section of stakeholders and answered questions at the WWF 95+ Group 10th anniversary celebration event. My Department has arranged to meet the Department for Transport, Local Government and Rural Affairs to discuss how local authorities may be encouraged to purchase timber from sustainable and legal sources where they are not doing so already. My Department is working closely with the Department for International Development and other Departments to develop bilateral agreements with producing countries that will help to halt the export of timber that has been felled illegally.

§ Mrs. Ann Winterton
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what measures her Department is taking to promote the viability of(a) the hardwood and (b) the softwood timber growing industries; what recent discussions she has had with the Timber Growers Association; and if she will make a statement. [25187]

§ Mr. Morley
The Government's Forestry Strategy for England sets out our priorities and programmes for sustainable forestry in England. These priorities include supporting the strategic development of woodland resources. Specific actions include support for regional and local marketing initiatives, and ensuring the supply of timber from our woodland resource is available at levels indicated in long-term forecasts. In addition, through the Forestry Commission and in partnership with woodland owners and wood users we are supporting the Wood for Good campaign, the largest single timber promotion ever mounted in the UK. Other measures include purchasing research on timber use from the Building Research Establishment, the Timber Research and Development Association and other organisations. We are also working to ensure that small sized timber and woodland residues are recognised as a source of renewable energy. These measures will help to promote the viability of the hardwood and softwood industries.
I meet regularly with representatives from the Timber Growers Association (now known as the Association of Timber Growers and Forestry Professionals, following a merger with the Association of Professional Foresters, effective from 1 January 2002). The association is represented on the England Forestry Forum and I attended a parliamentary lunch with the Timber Growers Association and the UK Forest Products Association on 5 November 2001.