I CONTINUE to be surprised by our MP Mark Harper, who persists in assuring us in his column in the Forester (January 6) that we have nothing to fear about a sell-off of our forest because he has the assurances of the Forestry Minister that this will not happen.
It may well be that this Forestry Minister has given Mark such assurances, but the powers being given ministers in the Public Bodies Bill will be there to be used in perpetuity by any future minister. And by then there will be nothing we can do to prevent it.
By giving so much power to ministers to act without reference to Parliament, The Public Bodies Bill is a sinister piece of legislation that cuts to the heart of our democratic system. Indeed, it has been described by an eminent group of lawyers on House of Lords Select Committee on the Constitution as constitutionally dangerous – to quote from their report:
"The Public Bodies Bill strikes at the very heart of our constitutional system, being a type of 'framework' or 'enabling' legislation that drains the lifeblood of legislative amendment and debate across a very broad range of public arrangements."
We have to fight now to protect our forests – if we do not, any future decisions can be taken by a minister without reference even to Parliament.
James Winship
Alvington