Meeting of the Parliament 09 November 2022
In a very packed programme, I have opportunities to speak with a number of international colleagues about forestry. One thing that I will be saying is that, despite Covid and some of the worst winter storms ever experienced, Scotland still managed to meet 80 per cent of its target. I think that we planted more than 10,000 hectares, whereas the equivalent figure for the rest of the UK is 3,000 hectares. Therefore, I will be saying, “Here’s how you can learn from Scotland and the successes that we have had so far.”
If I can, Presiding Officer, I want to finish my point about woodland and farms. I believe in having the right tree in the right place and the co-existence of trees and agriculture. More than half of the forestry grant scheme applications for grant support for woodland creation are for smaller woodlands—those under 20 hectares—which are typically part of existing agricultural businesses. They provide shelter for livestock and habitat for wildlife, reduce our carbon footprint, provide an alternative fuel supply, and help planners with flooding.
Farmers and crofters are, of course, part of wider rural communities. As we increase our forest and woodland resource, and attract greater levels of private investment, we are determined to ensure a just transition and benefits for our people.
I would like to mention timber transport. I know that a number of communities are dealing with the impact of transporting timber from our forests to sawmills and other processors. Much of the rural road network is older than our forests, and I know that moving timber can cause disruption. That is why the Scottish Government continues to support the strategic timber transport scheme, which invests in road and other transport infrastructure to make the haulage of timber from our forests more sustainable and less disruptive.
As well as being the minister responsible for forestry, I look after the land reform portfolio, and I am clear that we must make sure that people, including future generations, are poised to benefit. Community ownership is an important part of that, as is Scottish Forestry’s Community Woodlands Association.
To bring about a just transition, we need a framework of policy and law that supports community engagement and attracts investment in good green jobs and industries. I very much hope that responses to my consultation on the proposed land reform bill will allow me to take the bill forward in that regard.
Presiding Officer, I want to get this on the record, so I hope that you will afford me the time to do that. I hope that today there has been a shared recognition of the importance of forests and the wide range of benefits that they deliver, but I recognise that there are on-going challenges. Through this parliamentary session, we will invest £100 million in the forestry sector, primarily through the grant scheme, which is geared towards woodland creation and management. The forthcoming Scottish agriculture bill will provide the legislative basis for future grant support for forestry, and ensure continuity and enhancement.
In the shorter term, and as announced in the September programme for government, we will build on the success of the forestry grant scheme with further enhancements. Those will include a new riparian woodland grant, which will provide multiple benefits for biodiversity; more support and advice for farmers who wish to integrate trees into their business; and a package of measures to support public engagement. I am pleased to announce that we will consult on future grant support for forestry early in the new year to ensure that the legal provisions provided by the forthcoming agriculture bill can be deployed most effectively.
All of that and more is about the Government’s determination to support the broad range of social, economic and environmental benefits that Scotland’s forestry is well poised to deliver.
I move,
That the Parliament acknowledges the essential contribution to net zero that trees, woods and forests make, tackling the twin crises of climate change and biodiversity loss, especially ahead of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) COP27; notes the importance of growing and maintaining a resilient forest resource to sustain its economic, social and environmental contribution; welcomes the achievements made in implementing Scotland’s Forestry Strategy 2019-2029; further welcomes the creation of 4,362 hectares of native woodland in 2021, delivering the target agreed in the Bute House Agreement, which will be reviewed in the forthcoming biodiversity strategy, and reiterates the commitment to increase the use of domestic timber, and the Scottish Government’s annual woodland creation target, which increases to 18,000 hectares by 2025.
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