asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what proportion of the land surface of the United Kingdom is covered by woodland and forest; and how this compares with all other mainland European countries.
The figure for the United Kingdom is 9 per cent. The most recent directly comparable statistics are those in the study " Forest Resources in the European Region " published in 1976 by the Food and Agriculture Organisation of the United Nations. The figures, which relate to land use in 1970, are reproduced below:
FORESTS AND OTHER WOODED LAND A3 A PERCENTAGE OF TOTAL LAND | |
Nordic Countries | |
Finland | 74 |
Norway | 29 |
Sweden | 64 |
EEC | |
Belgium | 20 |
Denmark | 12 |
France | 25 |
Germany, Fed. Rep. | 30 |
Ireland | 4 |
Italy | 27 |
Luxembourg | 32 |
Netherlands | 10 |
Central Europe | |
Austria | 45 |
Switzerland | 27 |
Southern Europe | |
Greece | 44 |
Portugal | 34 |
Spain | 28 |
Turkey | 26 |
Yugoslavia | 36 |
Eastern Europe | |
Bulgaria | 33 |
Czechoslovakia | 36 |
German Dem. Rep | 28 |
Hungary | 16 |
Poland | 28 |
Romania | 29 |
asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what was the total sum invested in forestry activity in both the private and public sectors during each of the last 10 years; and what is' the current annual cost of imported timber products.
The total sum invested by the Forestry Commission in each of the last 10 years is set out below. The Parliamentary Vote element includes expenditure on the Commisson's forestry authority functions which cover grants
Year ended 31 March | Parliamentary Vote including grants to private forestry (shown in brackets) | Other income | Total | |||||
£million | £million | £million | ||||||
1970 | … | … | … | … | 15·1 | (1·7) | 7·6 | 22·7 |
1971 | … | … | … | … | 15·5 | (1·9) | 9·0 | 24·5 |
1972 | … | … | … | … | 16·0 | (2·1) | 10·7 | 26·7 |
1973 | … | … | … | … | 15·4 | (2·1) | 12·0 | 27·4 |
1974 | … | … | … | … | 13·5 | (2·0) | 16·7 | 30·2 |
1975 | … | … | … | … | 17·0 | (1·9) | 24·4 | 41·4 |
1976 | … | … | … | … | 26·9 | (1·5) | 24·1 | 51·0 |
1977 | … | … | … | … | 27·0 | (1·3) | 28·9 | 55·9 |
1978 | … | … | … | … | 24·7 | (1·3) | 36·3 | 61·0 |
1979 | … | … | … | … | 29·3 | (2·2) | 36·3 | 65·6 |
asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food whether studies he has made indicate that forestry could be expanded without a marked reduction in agricultural production.
I have made no such studies. However, there is no evidence that the substantial afforestation that has taken place over the last 10 years has had any marked effect on livestock production. In considering future expansion of forestry, it is obviously necessary to take account of the economic importance of livestock production to our hill and upland areas. The established consultation procedures for afforestation proposals will ensure that the right balance with agriculture is maintained.