Part IE+W+S Forestry and Afforestation in Great Britain

1 The Forestry Commission.E+W+S

(1)The Forestry Commissioners constituted under the Forestry Acts 1919 to 1945 shall continue in existence and are in this Act referred to as “the Commissioners”.

(2)The Commissioners shall be charged with the general duty of promoting the interests of forestry, the development of afforestation and the production and supply of timber and other forest products [F1in Scotland, and in England and Wales] and in that behalf shall have the powers and duties conferred or imposed on them by this Act.

[F2(2A) The Commissioners also have the general duty of using land in Scotland placed at their disposal by the Scottish Ministers under this Act in the way best calculated to contribute to the delivery of the targets set in or under Part 1 of the Climate Change (Scotland) Act 2009 (asp 12) (“the climate change targets”). ]

(3)The Commissioners’ general duty [F3under subsection (2)]includes that of promoting the establishment and maintenance [F1in Scotland, and in England and Wales] of adequate reserves of growing trees.

[F4(3A)In discharging their functions under the Forestry Acts 1967 to 1979 the Commissioners shall, so far as may be consistent with the proper discharge of those functions, endeavour to achieve a reasonable balance between—

(a)the development of afforestation, the management of forests [F5and the production and supply of timber][F5, the production and supply of timber and, in Scotland, the delivery of the climate change targets], and

(b)the conservation and enhancement of natural beauty and the conservation of flora, fauna and geological or physiographical features of special interest.]

(4)The Commissioners shall, in exercising their functions under this Act, and also in exercising their powers under the M1Plant Health Act 1967 (which enables them to make orders for the control of timber pests and diseases), comply with such directions as may be given to them by

[F6(a)the Ministers in relation to the exercise of their functions as regards England and Wales; and

(b)the Scottish Ministers in relation to the exercise of their functions as regards Scotland.]

(5)Directions given by the Ministers for purposes of the foregoing subsection shall be given by them jointly, except in so far as they make arrangements that this subsection shall not apply.

[F7(6)The power of the Ministers and of the Scottish Ministers to give directions for the purposes of subsection (4) above shall be exercisable as regards Great Britain by the Ministers and the Scottish Ministers acting jointly.]

Textual Amendments

F1Words in s. 1(2)(3) substituted (1.7.1999) by S.I. 1999/1747, art. 3, Sch. 12 Pt. II para. 4(2)

F6S. 1(4)(a)(b) substituted (1.7.1999) for words “the Ministers” by S.I. 1999/1747, art. 3, Sch. 12 Pt. II para. 4(3)

F7S. 1(6) added (1.7.1999) by S.I. 1999/1747, art. 3, Sch. 12 Pt. II para. 4(4)

Marginal Citations

2 Constitution, administration, etc., of Commission.E+W+S

(1)The Commissioners shall consist of a chairman and not more than [F8ten] other members appointed by Her Majesty by warrant under the sign manual to be Forestry Commissioners.

(2)Of the persons for the time being appointed to be Forestry Commissioners—

(a)at least three shall be persons who have special knowledge and experience of forestry;

(b)at least one shall be a person who has scientific attainments and a technical knowledge of forestry; and

(c)at least one shall be a person who has special knowledge and experience of the timber trade.

(3)The Commissioners shall by order appoint committees for England, Scotland and Wales respectively, whose membership shall consist partly of persons who are Forestry Commissioners or officers of the Commissioners and partly of persons not exceeding three in number, who are not Forestry Commissioners or officers of the Commissioners; and the Commissioners may delegate, subject to such restrictions or conditions as they think fit, any of their functions to a committee so appointed.

(4)Part I of Schedule 1 to this Act shall have effect with respect to the Commissioners, their staff, proceedings and other related matters and to the committees appointed under subsection (3) of this section; and Part II of that Schedule shall have effect with respect to the superannuation of Forestry Commissioners and officers employed by the Commissioners.

Textual Amendments

3 Management of forestry land.E+W+S

(1)The Commissioners may manage, plant and otherwise use, for the purpose of the exercise of their functions under this Act, any land [F9in Scotland placed at their disposal by the Scottish Ministers under this Act or in England and Wales] placed at their disposal by the Minister under this Act, and—

(a)the power of the Commissioners under this subsection to manage and use any land shall, without prejudice to the generality of that power, include power to erect buildings or execute works on the land;

(b)any timber produced on land so placed at the Commissioners’ disposal shall belong to the Commissioners.

(2)The Commissioners may undertake the management or supervision, upon such terms and subject to such conditions as may be agreed upon, or give assistance or advice in relation to the planting or management, of any woods or forests belonging to any person, including woods and forests under the management of the Crown Estate Commissioners or under the control of a government department, or belonging to a local authority.

(3)The Commissioners may—

(a)purchase or otherwise acquire standing timber, and sell or otherwise dispose of any timber belonging to them or, subject to such terms as may be mutually agreed, to a private owner, and generally promote the supply, sale, utilization and conversion of timber;

(b)establish and carry on, or aid in the establishment and carrying on, of woodland industries.

(4)In this section the expression “timber” includes all forest products.

Textual Amendments

F9Words in s. 3(1) inserted (1.7.1999) by S.I. 1999/1747, art. 3, Sch. 12 Pt. II para. 4(5)

Modifications etc. (not altering text)

4. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . F10E+W+S

Textual Amendments

5 Forestry dedication covenants and agreements.E+W+S

(1)The provisions of this section shall have effect with a view to allowing land to be devoted to forestry by means of agreements entered into with the Commissioners, being agreements to the effect that the land shall not, except with the previous consent in writing of the Commissioners or, in the case of dispute, under direction of the minister [F11as regards England and Wales and the Scottish Ministers as regards Scotland], be used otherwise than for the growing of timber or other forest products in accordance with the rules or practice of good forestry or for purposes connected therewith; and in this Act—

(a)“forestry dedication covenant” means a covenant to the said effect entered into with the Commissioners in respect of land in England or Wales without an intention being expressed contrary to the application of section 79 of the M2Law of Property Act 1925 (under which covenants relating to land are, unless the contrary is expressed, deemed to be made on behalf of the covenantor, his successors in title and persons deriving title under him or them); and

(b)“forestry dedication agreement” means an agreement to the said effect entered into with the Commissioners in respect of land in Scotland by a person who is the proprietor thereof for his own absolute use or is empowered by this section to enter into the agreement.

(2)Where land in England or Wales is subject to a forestry dedication covenant,—

(a)the Commissioners shall, as respects the enforcement of the covenant against persons other than the covenantor, have the like rights as if they had at all material times been the absolute owners in possession of ascertained land adjacent to the land subject to the covenant and capable of being benefited by the covenant, and the covenant had been expressed to be for the benefit of that adjacent land; and

(b)section 84 of the M3Law of Property Act 1925 (which enables the [F12Upper Tribunal] to discharge or modify restrictive covenants) shall not apply to the covenant.

(3)A forestry dedication agreement affecting land in Scotland may be recorded in the General Register of Sasines and, on being so recorded, shall be enforceable at the instance of the Commissioners against any person having an interest in the land and against any person deriving title from him:

Provided that such an agreement shall not be so enforceable against any third party who shall have in bona fide onerously acquired right (whether [F13 title has been completed] or not) to his interest in the land prior to the agreement being recorded as aforesaid, or against any person deriving title from such third party.

(4)Schedule 2 to this Act shall have effect to empower limited owners, trustees and others to enter into forestry dedication covenants or agreements and to provide for matters arising on their doing so.

Textual Amendments

F11Words in s. 5(1) inserted (1.7.1999) by S.I. 1999/1747, art. 3, Sch. 12 Pt. II para. 4(6)

Modifications etc. (not altering text)

C2S. 5(3)(4) extended (S.) with modifications by Roads (Scotland) Act 1984 (c. 54, SIF 108), s. 46(3)

Marginal Citations

6 Requirements for haulage facilities.E+W+S

(1)The provisions of this section shall have effect where the Commissioners are of opinion that insufficient facilities exist for the haulage of timber from any wood or forest to a road, railway or waterway.

(2)Subject to the following subsections, the Commissioners may, where they are of the said opinion, make an order that the owner and occupier of any land shall afford the necessary facilities, subject to payment by the person in whose favour the order is made of reasonable rent or wayleave and of compensation for any damage caused by the haulage, and the owner or occupier shall thereupon comply with the order.

(3)The Commissioners shall not make an order under this section until the person proposed to be required to give the said facilities has had an opportunity of being heard.

[F14(4)a person aggrieved by an order under this section may–

(a)where the order is made in respect of land in England and Wales, appeal therefrom to the Minister in such manner and upon such conditions, if any, as may be prescribed by the Minister, who may thereupon revoke or vary the order; and

(b)where the order is made in respect of land in Scotland, appeal therefrom to the Scottish Ministers in such manner and upon such conditions, if any, as may be prescribed by the Scottish Ministers, who may thereupon revoke or vary the order.]

(5)The amount of rent or wayleave and compensation for damage which is payable in consequence of an order made under this section shall, in default of agreement, be assessed as follows that is to say—

(a)in a case relating to England and Wales, by a single arbitrator appointed by the President of the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors; and

(b)in a case relating to Scotland, by an arbiter appointed by the Chairman of the Scottish Committee of the said Institution.

Textual Amendments

F14S. 6(4) substituted (1.7.1999) by S.I. 1999/1747, art. 3, Sch. 12 Pt. II para. 4(7)

7 Prevention of damage by rabbits, hares and vermin.E+W+S

(1)The provision of this section shall have effect where the Commissioners are satisfied that trees or tree plants are being, or are likely to be, damaged by rabbits, hares or vermin owing to the failure of an occupier of land to destroy sufficiently the rabbits, hares or vermin on land in his occupation, or otherwise to take steps for the prevention of damage by them.

(2)The Commissioners may, where they are so satisfied, authorise in writing any competent person to enter on the land and kill and take the rabbits, hares or vermin thereon; but before doing so they shall first give to the occupier and owner of the land such opportunity as the Commissioners think reasonable of destroying the rabbits, hares or vermin, or of taking steps for the prevention of the damage.

(3)The Commissioners may recover from the occupier of the land the net cost incurred by them in connection with action taken by them under the foregoing subsection.

A sum recoverable under this subsection shall, in England or Wales, be recoverable summarily as a civil debt.

(4)Anyone who obstructs a person authorised by the Commissioners in the due exercise of his powers or duties under subsection (2) above shall be liable on summary conviction to a fine not exceeding [F15level 2 on the standard scale]; but the person authorised shall, if so required, produce his authority.

(5)For purposes of this section—

(a)the person entitled to kill rabbits, hares or vermin on any common land shall be deemed to be the occupier of the land; and

(b)the expression “vermin” includes squirrels.

Textual Amendments

[F167AIncidental powers of CommissionersE+W+S

(1) For the purpose of the exercise of their functions under this Act so far as relating to [F17land in Scotland or] land in England and Wales, or for the purpose of the exercise of their functions under section 8(1)(b) of this Act, the Commissioners may—

(a)form, or participate in the forming of, a body corporate;

(b)invest in a body corporate;

(c)provide loans;

(d)establish a charitable trust; or

(e)act, or appoint a person to act, as an officer of a body corporate or as a trustee of a charitable trust.

(2)The powers contained in subsection (1)(b) and (c) shall be exercisable only with Treasury approval.]

Textual Amendments

[F187BDelegation of functions of Commissioners: ScotlandS

(1)The Commissioners may, to such extent and subject to such conditions as they think appropriate, delegate their functions under section 3(1) and (3) of this Act to such community bodies as they consider appropriate.

(2)A delegation under subsection (1) may only be made in relation to land in Scotland—

(a)placed at the disposal of the Commissioners by the Scottish Ministers under this Act, and

(b)which is let to the community body to which the delegation is made.

(3)A delegation under subsection (1) does not affect the ability of the Commissioners to carry out the function delegated.

(4)A delegation under subsection (1) does not affect the ability of the Scottish Ministers to—

(a)determine which land in Scotland is placed at the disposal of the Forestry Commissioners,

(b)give directions under section 1 to the Commissioners in relation to the land in question.

(5)A delegation under subsection (1) may be varied or revoked at any time.

(6) In this section, “ community body ” has the meaning given in section 7C.

Textual Amendments

7CDelegation of functions under section 7B: community bodiesS

(1)A community body is, subject to subsection (3), a company limited by guarantee the articles of association of which include the following—

(a)a definition of the community to which the company relates,

(b)provision that the company must have not fewer than 20 members,

(c)provision that the majority of the members of the company is to consist of members of the community,

(d)provision by which the members of the company who consist of members of the community have control of the company,

(e)provision ensuring proper arrangements for the financial management of the company and the auditing of its accounts.

(2)The Commissioners may, if they think it in the public interest to do so, disapply such requirements specified in paragraphs (b) to (d) in subsection (1) in relation to any body they may specify.

(3)A body is not a community body unless the Commissioners have given it written confirmation that they are satisfied that the main purpose of the body is consistent with furthering the achievement of sustainable development.

(4)Unless the Scottish Ministers otherwise direct, a community—

(a)must be defined for the purposes of subsection (1)(a) by reference to a postcode unit or postcode units, and

(b)must comprise the persons from time to time—

(i)resident in that postcode unit or in one of those postcode units, and

(ii)entitled to vote, at a local government election, in a polling district which includes that postcode unit or those postcode units (or part of it or them).

(5) In subsection (4) above, “ postcode unit ” means an area in relation to which a single postcode is used to facilitate the identification of postal service delivery points within the area.

(6) In subsection (1), “ company limited by guarantee ” has the meaning given by section 3(3) of the Companies Act 2006 (c. 46). ]

Textual Amendments

8 Miscellaneous powers of Commissioners.E+W+S

F19(1)The Commissioners may—

(a)undertake the collection, preparation, publication and distribution of statistics relating to forestry, and promote and develop instruction and training in forestry by establishing or aiding schools or other educational institutions or in such other manner as they think fit;

(b)make, or aid in making, such inquiries, experiments and research, and collect, or aid in collecting, such information as they may think important for the purpose of promoting forestry and the teaching of forestry, and publish or otherwise take steps to make known the results of the inquiries, experiments or research and disseminate the information;

(c)make, or aid in making, such inquiries as they think necessary for the purpose of securing an adequate supply of timber and other forest products [F20in Scotland, and in England and Wales].

[F21(2)The Commissioners may exploit any intellectual property or intangible assets arising from the carrying out of any activity referred to in subsection (1)(b).

(3)”Intellectual property” for the purpose of subsection (2) includes any patent, trademark, copyright, design right, registered design or plant breeder’s right.]

Textual Amendments

F20Words in s. 8(c) substituted (1.7.1999) by S.I. 1999/1747, art. 3, Sch. 12 Pt. II para. 4(8)

[F228A General duty of Ministers.E+W+S

In performing their functions under this Act the Ministers shall have regard to the national interest in maintaining and expanding the forestry resources [F23of England and Wales and the Scottish Ministers shall have regard to the national interest in maintaining and expanding the forestry resources of Scotland].]

Textual Amendments

F23Words in s. 8A substituted (30.6.1999) by S.I. 1999/1756, art. 2, Sch. para.3