On 2nd Feb This Wednesday there is a crunch vote in Parliament. MPs will vote on a motion demanding a rethink of plans to sell our national forests.
If enough of us contact our MPs now, we've got a real chance of winning this vote! So let's make sure MPs are getting thousands of messages with one very clear request: vote to save our forests this Wednesday.
It's quick and easy to email your MP, click here to send them a message:
http://www.38degrees.org.uk/tell-your-mp-to-save-our-forests
This vote was announced on Friday - it's only happening thanks to everything we have done together to stand up for our public forests. The motion itself says that, "over 225,000 people have signed a petition against such a sell-off"! [1] It's even more proof that our campaign is working and that if we keep going we can win.
On Wednesday morning, MPs will open up newspapers to find full-page Save our Forests adverts – paid for by thousands of us. Let's back this powerful message in the media with an avalanche of emails to MPs from local voters urging them to do the right thing.
We're close, and together, we can win this. Please take a moment to email your MP now:
http://www.38degrees.org.uk/tell-your-mp-to-save-our-forests
Please contact your MP NOW. :tup:
Why?
Seriously, I've heard a lot of debate about the sell off of the forests - but nobody has explained what will happen next. I'm pretty certain that Barratts won't be able to build all over them. So....if you want me to protest about this what actual change will I notice if this goes through?
From what i've read and sen, i think the real issue is access.
Private owners will be all about making money and will erode when and what parts of it you can access. The welfare of the various forms of wildlife, fauna etc will also take second place to the balance sheet.
No Barratt's would not be building on it any time soon, but the damage a private owner would do might be just as damaging.
Imagine what the effect would be if a syndication of "European Travellers" or what ever we're allowed to call them nowadays (Gypsies when i was growing up)?
For me, i'd leave it in the hands of the Forestry Commission. I think that sometimes we just have to accept that somethings don't always generate a profit but need to be maintained and Forests are one of those things. Next thing they'd be doing is flogging off beaches and the water around out coast!
Quote from: picsfor on February 01, 2011, 08:43:00 AM
Imagine what the effect would be if a syndication of "European Travellers" or what ever we're allowed to call them nowadays (Gypsies when i was growing up)?
Um, nothing to stop that at the moment. Woodland goes for between 5 and 15K per acre. Putting a covenant on them to allow public access etc reduces the value but it still seems a better option for raising money than having McDonalds sponsor schools.
http://www.woodlands.co.uk/buying-a-wood/south-east-england/islip-wood/
That's about 5 miles from my house and with easy access to the M2 and continent.
ETA: since you mention beaches....couple of beaches near here are privately owned. For example Whitstable Beach. The biggest difference it makes is that unlike lots of beaches dogs are welcome there all year round.
Valid point...
I've signed it as I think the forests should stay in the hands of the forestry commision or woodland trust etc....I even included this in my email to my MP, methinks Miss Joni Mitchell may have been somewhat prophetic with "Big Yellow Taxi"
They took all the trees
Put 'em in a tree museum
And they charged the people
A dollar and a half just to see 'em
Don't it always seem to go
That you don't know what you've got
Till it's gone
They paved paradise
And put up a parking lot
As I understand, it costs about £18M to have the Forestry commission run the business of maintaining the forests. But they make about £14M in selling farmed timber.
Someone coming in is going to have to make a profit, so needs to make up the short fall of £4M plus £??M for profit. Its how that profit is made that is really the question. They either have to charge for access, or sell more trees, or do something else.
I actually don't think the FC do a bad job, and I can't see anyone else doing a better one as the FC do more than just make money, which is not always the be all and end all.
Quote from: anglefire on February 01, 2011, 10:15:30 PM
Someone coming in is going to have to make a profit, so needs to make up the short fall of £4M plus £??M for profit. Its how that profit is made that is really the question. They either have to charge for access, or sell more trees, or do something else.
Yeah that kind of makes sense. You only have to look at how the National Trust get on with stately homes etc.
BTW £4M a year net cost for those forests? That's about 10p per tax payer. Bargain. Until somebody spotted the asset value.
Unless they changed it, all profits from woodlands are, erm, tax free. Which would make them a nice investment.
I emailed my MP about this and today received a letter from him thanking me. :tup:
It was on House of Commons paper and envelope but not sure that's saving the forests! :doh:
Just to let you know we won. :2funny: :2funny: :tup:
Just received this email.
We've saved our forests! The government has just announced that they're going to scrap the forest sell-off. Together we convinced the government that our forests should be protected for future generations, not sold to the highest bidder.
This is our people-powered victory. Next time someone tries to tell any of us that signing petitions or emailing our MPs doesn't work, we'll know exactly what to say: "People power does work. Just look at the Save Our Forests campaign".
This is what people power looks like. It means there are over half a million of us feeling very proud of what we've achieved together today. If you know someone who thinks writing to MPs or signing a petition is a waste of time, maybe you should forward them this email.
The Independent are saying Cameron changed his mind because of the "furious backlash that has hit the Government" - that's us. Sky News agree, saying "This is a great example of people power" and "the news comes after hundreds of thousands of people united against the plans"[1].
Back in October, 38 Degrees members voted to start this campaign. Then we told our friends, chipped in for a people-powered opinion poll and national newspaper ads. We didn't do this on our own. Local groups rallied alongside national organisations like the National Trust, Friends of the Earth, and Greenpeace to show the government that we didn't want our forests to be sold off. Together we convinced them that the public wanted our forests protected for future generations. [2]
We need to keep an eye on what happens next, but we've shown that if forests are under threat people power can come to the rescue. Right now let's celebrate that we forced the government to back down from their plans to sell up to 100% of our woodlands!
Hundreds of 38 Degrees members are celebrating now on our Facebook page and the website. You can click here to join in: http://www.facebook.com/peoplepowerchange and http://www.38degrees.org.uk/forests-we-won-blog
Thanks for getting involved,
David, Hannah, Johnny and the 38 Degrees team
Thanks for all the votes. :tup:
They [Government] have perhaps worked out who they are actually working for! Doubt it though!
Now we have to convince them that the fuel prices are too high and who owns the banks!
Yeah, I'm always suspicious when the government let us win one.........
I have a suspicion it's part of a well thought out strategy to make them appear that they are' Listening to the people'. Find a few items that have little or no importance in the long run, but will stir up a few angry groups into protest and then back down saying 'We are listening to the mood of the public', aren't we a caring and responsible government.
Cos we're all in this together you know! ::)