Jim Hume MSP launched the campaign to Save Our Forests and condemned the SNP’s move to privatise 25% of Scottish forests as their latest money making scam. The Liberal Democrats working with environmental organisations have won the case.

UPDATES:

• Money doesn't grow on trees - As the consultation draws to a close Jim Hume urges the Scottish Government to scrap the plans
• Is the minister preparing a u-turn on forestry plans? - Jim Hume MSP
• Alan Reid MP and George Lyon campaign to save Argyll & Bute forests
• Danny Alexander MP and John Farquhar Munro MSP have joined forces to try and protect Culloden Wood
• Willie Rennie MP warns of the job losses from the proposal
• Lib Dems step up forest campaign
• Tavish recorded a video during his visit to Glentress with Jeremy Purvis and Jim Hume
• Public meeting for local people to have their say on SNP plans to sell our forests
• Packed public meeting in Argyll say NO to the SNP
• Ministers must count cost of jobs put at risk by forestry plans - Hume

For a list of the forests under threat, Click here.

Jim Hume MSP

Jim Hume’s campaign comes in light of the SNP’s attempts to effectively sell off publicly owned Forestry Commission forests to private timberland investment companies. The proposal was hidden deep within the Climate Change Bill and would have seen the most commercially viable forests being leased to private investment companies for up to 75 years. Unsurprisingly when this privatisation by the back door approach was debated the SNP were backed by the Tories, the SNP’s unlikely but ever loyal bedfellows.

The 25% of forests targeted for this leasing option was the most commercially viable proportion of Scotland’s forestry estate and equated to about 40% of production for the Forestry Commission. Removing this from public ownership would have significantly diminished essential Forestry Commission income for investment in maintaining Scottish forests and projects including the 7stanes network and for creating new leisure access initiatives such as mountain biking, walking, orienteering and other community woodland initiatives elsewhere. A further worry was that Forestry Commission jobs were undoubtedly under threat, and local timber companies dependent upon cutting rights granted to them by the Forestry Commission faced an uncertain future if those cutting rights had been taken away or if wood prices were set higher than is affordable for local companies.

Danny Alexander MP and John Farquhar Munro MSP at Culloden Wood

Liberal Democrats believe that the SNP are in a real way threatening to destroy rural Scotland through this hugely flawed proposal and are prepared to sell off the family silver for what amounts to a very small, one off sum of money.