Fifth Report - Seeing the wood for the trees: the contribution of the forestry and timber sectors to biodiversity and net zero goals

The government stated its existing England Trees Action Plan provides a generational vision to 2050, reinforced by the Environmental Improvement Plan, claiming these already establish a clear and holistic long-term vision for forestry.

The government is developing the Timber in Construction Roadmap in conjunction with stakeholders, aiming to balance wood production with diversified supply chains and broader forest policy objectives for nature recovery and net zero.

The government accepted the recommendation, stating that Forestry England's business planning already allocates resources for restocking and that an £11 million investment is being made to modernise seed and sapling facilities to prevent delays and ensure resilient planting stock.

The government accepted the recommendation, stating that the Greening Government Commitments reporting cycle was delayed due to the pandemic but confirmed the 2020-21 report was published in April 2023 and the 2021-22 report is scheduled for later this calendar year.

The government stated that the England Woodland Creation Offer's ambition already includes commercial forestry and timber production, and they have run campaigns focusing on the economic aspects of woodland creation to communicate its benefits to prospective planters.

The government stated that the England Woodland Creation Offer (EWCO) already aims to encourage commercial forestry and timber production, and they have conducted campaigns to clearly communicate that grant schemes support planting for domestic timber production in mixed woodlands.

The government has already published an initial report detailing the datasets used for the 'presumption to plant' maps and plans to publish updated maps and a short report in autumn 2023, outlining their use for regulating forestry proposals.

The government accepts the recommendation, stating that good progress has been made on the Timber in Construction Roadmap, which they intend to publish later in 2023. They confirm the roadmap will consider actions to increase domestic timber supply and involves engagement with industry.

The government accepts the recommendation and is considering the potential for homegrown hardwoods within the Timber in Construction Roadmap, including promoting woodland management, pest control, and working with industry on tree breeding.

The government stated that its England Trees Action Plan provides a long-term vision to 2050, reinforced by the Environmental Improvement Plan, addressing concerns about clarity and long-term direction, and is working with industry on the National Wood Strategy.

The government reiterated that its England Trees Action Plan offers a generational vision to 2050, reinforced by the Environmental Improvement Plan, and is collaborating with industry on the sector-led National Wood Strategy.

The government committed to publishing the Timber in Construction Roadmap later in 2023, noting good progress and ongoing engagement with industry to increase domestic timber supply and use.

The government agreed with the committee's observation, detailing over £675 million in funding, legislative targets, and achieving the highest tree planting rate in England in nearly a decade.

The government responded to concerns about tree planting rates by highlighting a significant increase in England's planting in 22/23, the highest in a decade, and a strong pipeline, stating it considers this positive progress towards targets.

The government acknowledged concerns about restocking delays, stating Forestry England regularly restocks and allocates resources through business planning. Additionally, it is investing £11 million to modernise seed and sapling facilities to improve production and prevent future delays in restocking.

The government has already published initial maps for woodland creation constraints and is actively developing updated versions with Natural England, planning to publish them in autumn 2023 to support forestry regulation under the 'presumption to plant' principle.

The government agrees with the importance of increasing domestic timber production and highlights its England Trees Action Plan and statutory tree and woodland target to achieve 16.5% cover by 2050, which aims to stimulate increased planting of both hard and softwoods for multiple benefits.

The government accepts the need for policies prioritising species diversity and resilience, stating it encourages mixed woodlands and implements measures like the Seed Sourcing Grant, Tree Production Innovation Fund, and Tree Health Resilience Strategy to ensure trees are resilient to climate change.

The government accepts the need to increase conifer planting without sacrificing broadleaf species, stating that its statutory woodland cover target will stimulate planting of both hard and softwoods, and that it aims to encourage mixed woodlands for diverse purposes.

The government accepts the need to increase woodland cover and manage it effectively, citing its statutory target to increase tree canopy and woodland cover to at least 16.5% by 2050, which aims to stimulate diverse and resilient woodland creation for various environmental and productive benefits.

The government accepts the recommendation, stating that during the development of the Timber in Construction Roadmap, they have already explored options to incentivise low carbon construction, including the safe use of domestically grown timber and innovative engineered timber products. They also reference current projects and collaboration with DLUHC on safety.

The government commits to developing a BECCS policy ensuring net-negative emissions based on full lifecycle assessment, outlining principles for deployment and confirming criteria for robust negative emissions.

The government agrees with the committee that increasing domestic woody biomass supply from actively managed forests offers opportunities and benefits for biodiversity and resilience, and highlights existing Countryside Stewardship grants and Woods into Management Forestry Innovation Funds that support this.