IT was disappointing that Mark Harper declined to attend the meeting by the Speech House January 3. He would have had the opportunity to put his reasons for supporting the sale of the Forest to some 3,000 of his constituents (and an amazing number of dogs). Of course it would have taken some courage. As I stood in the crowd on a chill January day with the flakes of snow drifting down I wondered how many would have turned up if Mark had called the meeting, and how many, if any, would have supported him. I only know of two and they are both senior members of his party.

Mark has stuck to his stalling tactic of "Wait for the White Paper" and the consultation. That is pathetic. The contents of this paper have been leaked to the Press. What is vital is the Bill the Government has introduced in the House of Lords. If and when this has passed all parliamentary stages the minister in charge of DEFRA will be able to flog off our Ancient Forest with a flick of her pen. Mark's assurances that "there will be safeguards" are worthless. All the developers need to do is to use another outfit to agree the contract and then take it over second hand. This knocks out all the agreed conditions under which the first sale was agreed.

As for the White Paper, several options are put to us. Keeping the Forest as it is, at present run for us by the Forestry Commission is ruled out. Many of us have criticised the Commission's policy of planting alien conifers like you grow potatoes, in straight lines, clear felled and replanted. This is destructive to the organisms in the soil in which trees flourish, and spreads the diseases which are at the moment causing havoc to Corsican Pines and Larches. The new purchasers will take over huge areas which are only fit for pulping and turned into cardboard. Ironically, Kevin Stannard, our new deputy surveyor, amazed us by coming to talk to the West Dean Parish Council. An enlightened man, he said he was against clear felling, and planned to manage through selective thinning and planting native species in line with the Commission's guidelines, "The Keepers of Time" which aims to restore the fabric of Ancient Forestry. What we must fear is large scale open-cast mining followed by several land fill sites between the three main aquifers running down through the heart of the Forest. The chief officer in charge of the waste from Bristol told me that they are so desperate that he has to organise a train every day to take the city's waste to Bedfordshire where it was dumped in the old brick fields. there is a lot of money to be made from waste and under the new regional planning regime there are no rights of appeal against planning decisions. This is the worst possible scenario. But in the swathe of woodland privatisations in 1981 95 per cent were followed by access being denied to the public, which is many peoples main concern. And think of Westonbirt across the river. The finest arboretum in the land.

We have a budget deficit to make up, but at what cost? As a child I came out of an air-raid shelter to see Canterbury in flames. We all feared our Cathedral was gone. Destroying our ancient woods is as bad and the national finance situation does not remotely justify this vandalism.

Three weeks ago I travelled down to St Margaret's Bay near Dover where I used to live to attend the carol service in the Cathedral. I am also attached to the White Cliffs on which I have walked hundreds of times. They are our national symbol of resistance to Nazi Germany. And believe it or not local people told me they were having to fight off developers keen to exploit them with hotels and housing. Fortunately they have the shield of the status of Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB) and this has so far helped prevent the desecration.

I recall with others organising a petition collecting six thousand signatures requesting the local authority to take up an Area of Outstanding Beauty that was on offer to the Forest of Dean. One of those who blocked this was, guess who? Mark Harper MP. AONB does not prevent development; it guides the positioning to appropriate sites to protect the Countryside.

If we lived in a democracy like Switzerland where I worked, with those signatures we could have, by law, had a local referendum and the majority verdict would by law have had to be respected. In Geneva too, anyone who cuts down a tree, even a dead one, without having it inspected and written approval would be in court on a criminal charge.

If Mark Harper, a junior minister, spoke, or even worse voted against the Bill he would be taken by the Party's Chief Whip for an interview with the Prime Minister. He would be unlikely to keep his post in Government, let alone promotion to Cabinet rank. On the other hand, he could probably have the safest seat in the country. As an historian I can rattle off a string of Parliamentarians in the past who stood up for the right in defiance of Party leadership. And they are the ones who were most admired. Think again, Mark.

Roger Horsfield

Bream