asked Her Majesty’s Government:

What are the names of the organisations or individuals to whom licences have been issued during the past 18 months by Natural England to release grey squirrels into the wild; and whether the locations of the releases were on Forestry Commission or privately owned land.

My Lords, since 2006, Natural England has issued licences to the following organisations: four wildlife rescue centres, five RSPCA centres and three universities. Under the Environmental Information Regulations 2004, details of individuals are not publishable because it could affect public safety. Records of the type of land that grey squirrels are released on are not kept. However, the Forestry Commission has not released, or permitted anyone else to release, any grey squirrels on its land.

My Lords, why on earth did Natural England issue the licences? Does it not realise that grey squirrels are pests, that they do infinite damage to woodlands, orchards and gardens, that they raid birds’ nests and steal the eggs, that they gnaw through electricity cables and, above all, that they are responsible for driving the native red squirrel population out of large areas of this country, so that there are only a very few small areas where they still exist?

My Lords, no licences are issued to release grey squirrels in any areas where there are red squirrels or buffer zones for red squirrels. The population of grey squirrels is estimated to be more than 2 million: the number of squirrels released under licence since 2006 is six.

My Lords, I declare an interest as chair of the Red Squirrel Protection Partnership, which receives £148,000 from Defra. As of today, we have slaughtered—sorry, dispatched—11,441 grey squirrels in the past year. We have cleared two-thirds of Northumberland and, by the end of the year, hope to have cleared the whole of Northumberland of grey squirrels. But we have a problem: the public perception is that grey squirrels are being released by Defra in the north of England. What efforts are being taken to inform the public that the release of grey squirrels is not taking place in the north of England?

My Lords, as I just said to the House, licences have been issued to those bodies and six grey squirrels have been released—out of a population of more than 2 million. There are lots of rules about where they can be released—roughly within one kilometre of where they were captured. They are taken only on welfare grounds and, notwithstanding the difficulties of the red squirrel, I do not think that six is a problem.

We have to remember that the grey squirrel is the only wildlife that most urban dwellers see in their gardens. The fact that it is a pest and is driving the red squirrel out is a serious problem. However, the issue of grey squirrels being released is not a factor, because they are not allowed to be released in areas where the red squirrel lives. We know where they are: on the islands, in the north of England and in the buffer zones. While I am on this topic, the Red Alert North England partnership has 16 forest areas in the north of England where there is the greatest chance of maintaining the red squirrel. I want to announce that Forestry Commission woodland improvement grants are available to support red squirrel conservation work. The application for those grants closes on 29 February. Red squirrel conservation work is currently undersubscribed.

My Lords, I declare an interest as chair of the Forestry Commission. Will the Minister confirm that the red cannot coexist with the grey and that 85 per cent of the existing English red squirrels are in the Kielder Forest? Will he further confirm that Natural England will not issue licences for the release of any grey squirrels in the northern counties, and will he look again at extending that to include the northern part of Lancashire, which is very near some of the buffer zones in the Craven district of North Yorkshire?

My Lords, I am more than happy to look at that. We are incredibly sympathetic to protecting the native red squirrel. However, I have to go with the facts I have. As I said, licences are very restrictive about who can release. As I also pointed out, in the only year for which we have release data available, six grey squirrels were released under licence out of a population of more than 2 million. I cannot claim that is a serious problem. They were released under very restrictive licence conditions. However, I shall be happy to look at the Lancashire border zones, as my noble friend asked.

My Lords, why were licences issued at all? The Minister has not given the reason. If you give licences for six squirrels, presuming that three are male and three are female, in no time at all you will have 60 squirrels. After that, my mind boggles. The Minister has not given a reason for the issuing of the licences.

I apologise, my Lords. The grey squirrel is listed in legislation. Under Section 14 of the Wildlife and Countryside Act, it is illegal to release grey squirrels into the wild in England unless licensed to do so by Natural England. It is the responsibility of landowners to control grey squirrels on their land. There is a set of rules about capturing grey squirrels and where they can be released. As I said, they are taken only on welfare and similar grounds and only six have been released under licence. I cannot keep saying that.

My Lords, why are any licences granted? Why are those taken for welfare purposes not dispatched immediately, as was said by the noble Lord, Lord Redesdale?

My Lords, they are released in areas where they are no threat to the red squirrel. Red squirrels have disappeared from much of our country, as the noble Lord said. We know where they all are. They are dispatched humanely in areas where a licence cannot be issued. However, six—I emphasise “six”—were allowed to be released into the wild in places where they posed no danger to any other species.

My Lords, whose welfare are we talking about?

My Lords, we are talking about the interests of biodiversity. It is a pity about what has happened to the red squirrel population due to grey squirrels having been introduced from the United States. Some European countries are now having the same experience as us; by overprotecting the grey squirrel, they are losing their red squirrels. They have not learnt the lessons that we have. But we are considering the interests of biodiversity where release of the grey does not pose a threat. I am not against red squirrels, but only six greys have been released under a very strict licence issued by Natural England on wildlife grounds.

My Lords, can my noble friend tell the House what it is, apart from a bushy tail, that makes a grey squirrel a more desirable bit of wildlife than a brown rat?

My Lords, I was always told that the grey squirrel was a rat with good PR. There are a lot more greys than reds, of course. Greys also live at much greater density, hence their prevalence in urban areas. There are up to 18 per hectare as compared with an average of one per hectare for red squirrels. Moreover, greys are more able to recover from environmental impacts and disease, so they are much more immune in that sense than the red—hence the demise of the red. People like to see squirrels in their gardens. However, I should add that not everybody likes them in their gardens. I am trying to cut down on the letters and e-mails.