House
of Commons Debates, Written Answers & Written Statements
Week
Ending 15 July 2011
Written Answers 11
July 2011
Caroline
Lucas:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs pursuant
to the answer to the hon. Member for Glasgow North of 21 June 2011, Official
Report, column 245W, on the Forestry Commission: redundancy, if she will
make it her policy to put on hold the decision to reduce the Forestry
Commission spending settlement pending the outcome of the work of the
Independent Panel on Forestry on the future of the public forest estate; what
information she has sought from the public and representative organisations on
the decision to reduce the Forestry Commission settlement; and when working
with the Forestry Commission on delivery of key outcomes, what methods were
used to assess the impact on (a) biodiversity, (b) recreation and
(c) education of the proposal to reduce the Forestry Commission
settlement. [64853]
Mr Paice: The Government have no
plans to put on hold the spending review allocation to the Forestry Commission.
In deciding the budget allocations for DEFRA and its arm’s length bodies,
Ministers took account of spending priorities and the contribution of
individual arm’s length bodies to achieving key outcomes for the Department.
The Forestry Commission continues to recognise that it may need to adapt its
spending review plans following the Government's response to the
recommendations of the Independent Panel on Forestry, and has structured its
plans in such a way that this flexibility can be achieved.
Caroline
Lucas:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs pursuant
to the answer of 30 June 2011, Official Report, column 1083, what
arrangements have been made for the chairing of meetings of the Independent
Panel on Forestry on the future of the public forest estate in the absence of
the chair; whether she expects the panel to report in November 2011; and if she
will make a statement. [64971]
Mr Paice: The independent panel's
findings and advice will be presented to the Secretary of State for
Environment, Food and Rural Affairs in a final report in spring 2012. The panel
has a planned work programme for the
11 July 2011
: Column 12W
summer and will make its own administrative arrangements about meetings or
events in the chair's absence. Further details of this are available on the
panel's webpage on the DEFRA website.