The government has abandoned its plans to privatise England's public forest estate
In a statement to the Commons on 17 February 2011, Environment Secretary Caroline Spelman, who oversaw the controversial proposals, announced the u-turn, saying: "I am sorry, we got this one wrong."
She said she took "full responsibility" for the climb-down, which was required after it became clear "the public and many MPs are not happy with the proposals".
"If there is one clear message it is that people cherish their forests and woodlands and the benefits that they bring," she told the House.
The government's plan to sell off or lease 258,000 hectares of England's public forests, managed by the Forestry Commission, was intended to give the private sector, community and charitable groups greater involvement in woodlands by encouraging a "mixed model" of ownership.
Let us translate this.
1. The Tories wanted to sell our forests to their Friends in the City.
2. Why?
3. Because there are all sorts of tax advantages in owning woodland, and presumably so that their Friends in the City could charge the hoi-polloi an arm and a leg to go into the woods to picnic with our Teddy Bears or pick mushrooms or whatever.
4. Our Prime Minister (that's the fellow with a face like a china doll that has spent too long in a dishwashing machine, what's-'is-name . . CAMERON!) hoped we wouldn't notice what he was getting up to in our name.
5. We did notice.
6. We didn't like it. We told him so.
7. With one eye on the next election and the other on recent events in Tahrir Square, he thought "The buggers will remember this!" Sooooo . .
8. . . he sent poor Ms.Spelman into the House to withdraw the measures and take the flak.
9. The hilarious aspect was Her Majesty's Opposition shouting . .
TIMBER!
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I don't leave comments on blogs that use Word Verification. Ditto blogs which I know have Comment Moderation applied. Life's too short and I'm too busy makin' money and what the Hell are these people scared of anyway? If you don't like some creep's comment . . TRY DELETING IT! You have that privilege.
And I never read unpunctuated so-called poetry. I don't understand why self-styled poets think it's clever to make their work difficult to read/understand.