Squirrels that cause £37m damage to forest should be ‘eradicated'
Lord Roborough, a shadow minister for the Department for the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, said Natural England needed to protect 'our green and pleasant land' from the 'vermin' grey squirrels that cause millions of pounds of damage.
He made the call while tabling an amendment to the Planning and Infrastructure Bill, which, if passed, would require Natural England to remove invasive non-native species, such as the grey squirrel, from protected environments.
Research by the Royal Forestry Society (RFS) suggests that grey squirrels' habit of stripping tree bark causes about £37m in damage per year, with the majority of costs falling on the owners of woodland across the UK, including farmers and the Forestry Commission.
Lord Roborough called the species, first introduced to Britain in 1876 as an ornamental curiosity, 'rats that live in trees'.
He added: 'They are killing millions of native broadleaves every year as they enter their prime and threatening the survival of red squirrels.
'It is time Natural England finally took responsibility for eradicating these vermin and other menacing invasive species in order to protect our green and pleasant land and the native creatures that call it home.'
The population of grey squirrels is now estimated to be around 2.7 million, with the invasive species competing for food and resources from the native red squirrel.
They are blamed not only for displacing the red squirrel, whose numbers are now reduced to fewer than 300,000, but also for causing extensive damage to Britain's forests, by stripping tree bark.
Numbers must be 'controlled urgently'
They often chew away the bark on trees, removing the outer layer and leaving them weakened, in some cases killing them.
RFS estimate that as much as £13.5m of the £37m estimate could be in damage to timber, with a further £9.2m in lost carbon capture.
A further £14.1m was estimated to have been lost through damage mitigation costs, with £0.2m potentially spent on replanting damaged trees.
The Countryside Alliance said it has estimated that 15 per cent of broadleaf area and 5 per cent of coniferous forest area are damaged by grey squirrels.
Johnnie Furse, a spokesman for the Countryside Alliance said: 'We need to get serious about the importance of protecting native species and effective wildlife management'.
He called for their numbers to be 'controlled urgently', and praised the work of dedicated conservationists who have ensured Britain's dwindling number of reds remains.
In 2021, the King, the then Prince of Wales, marked Squirrel Appreciation Day on Jan 21 by personally thanking volunteers who work to protect red squirrels.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Independent
12 minutes ago
- The Independent
What is Yvette Cooper's plan to fast-track asylum claims?
As tensions flare up in the UK over migration, with protests taking place in Newcastle, Manchester and north London, the government is pursuing a new plan to reduce the asylum backlog. The home secretary has said she plans to introduce a fast-track scheme to turn around asylum decisions within weeks, via a 'major overhaul' of the appeal process. The plan is part of a wider attempt to crack down on the number of people crossing the Channel, with Ms Cooper announcing a 'one-in-one-out' returns deal with France earlier this year. But despite their efforts, last week it was revealed that the number of migrants arriving in the UK after crossing the English Channel topped 25,000 in record time, piling pressure on the government to take further action. It is hoped that the new plan will make a dent in the backlog and return people to safe countries faster, reducing the number of asylum seekers who are housed in hotels while awaiting the outcome of a claim or appeal. Here, The Independent takes a look at everything we know about the plan so far and how it will work in practice. How would the fast-track system work? Asylum seekers and their families are housed in temporary accommodation, including hotels, if they are waiting for the outcome of a claim or an appeal and have been assessed as not being able to support themselves independently. But Yvette Cooper has now promised a 'major overhaul' of the appeal process, speeding up the time it takes for decisions on claims and appeals to be made. There are currently limited details on how this system would work, but sources told the Sunday Times it would allow decisions to be taken within weeks, rather than months or even years. Once a decision has been taken, those who have been rejected will be returned to their home country – reducing the number of people housed in temporary accommodation. 'If we speed up the decision-making appeal system and also then keep increasing returns, we hope to be able to make quite a big reduction in the overall numbers in the asylum system, because that is the best way to actually restore order and control,' Ms Cooper said. When will it be implemented? The home secretary has said she will legislate for the changes in autumn, when MPs return from their summer break. But it could take months for any legislation to pass through parliament, meaning we are unlikely to see the fast-track system implemented until the new year. How big is the asylum backlog and why is tackling it a priority? As of the end of March 2025, there were 78,745 asylum applications awaiting an initial decision – an 8 per cent decrease from the end of June 2024 and a 13 per cent decrease compared to the end of December 2024, official immigration statistics show. These outstanding cases related to 109,536 people, including both main applicants and their dependents. Labour has put a pledge to fix the 'broken' asylum system and crack down on the number of people coming to the UK on small boats at the centre of its plan for government. But with boat crossings at a record high, and the asylum backlog still above 75,000, there is mounting pressure on ministers to take more drastic action, a pressure exacerbated by the success of Reform UK in the polls. The government has also promised to end the use of asylum hotels before the end of this parliament, a promise it is unlikely to meet unless the backlog is reduced. Tensions over asylum hotels have flared up in recent weeks, with a protest and counter-protest taking place on Saturday outside the Thistle City Barbican Hotel in north London, and also in Newcastle and Manchester.
Telegraph
13 minutes ago
- Telegraph
Labour's net-zero ‘flight tax' set to raise cost of family holiday
Labour's 'flight tax' on airlines will add more than £50 to the cost of a family holiday within a decade, analysis shows. Net zero rules introduced by Sir Keir Starmer mean planes must be filled with at least 2 per cent sustainable fuel, which will rise to 10 per cent followed by 22 per cent by 2040. The Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF) mandate means airlines that do not comply with the green policy face heavy fines likely to be passed on in part to passengers. Costs associated with the new levy are expected to reach £4.5 billion by 2035, according to a new analysis by Public First. This works out at £12.79 per passenger per flight leaving the UK, adding £51.16 to the average overseas holiday taken by a family of four. The impact of the policy is expected to hit Britons as soon as 2027, with its cost hitting £200 million in that year. 'Ludicrous net stupid zero' By 2030, this figure will have ballooned to £1.5 million, the equivalent to £4.64 per passenger per flight – making a holiday for a family of four £18.56 more expensive. Richard Tice, the Reform UK deputy leader, told The Telegraph: 'This is yet another egregious tax on working citizens to pay for the ludicrous net stupid zero. A Reform government will scrap all this nonsense.' Greg Smith, a Tory transport minister, said: 'Labour said the transition to green aviation would cost pennies but now families are being hit with soaring ticket prices to fund Ed Miliband's net zero experiment. 'It's not just weekend getaways being priced out. It's regional airports under threat, tourism on the ropes, and British families paying the price for Labour's ideological fantasy. 'The truth is net zero by 2050 is impossible without bankrupting our country and Labour's plan to chase it will ground British families before it ever lands.' 80pc cost could be passed to consumers The Government's own impact assessment of the green mandate found that as much as 80 per cent of its cost could be passed on to consumers. Labour claims the pledge to use more sustainable fuel will support thousands of jobs while cutting the UK's transport emissions on the way to becoming a 'clean energy superpower'. The figures come as ministers were urged to relax red tape that means SAF cannot currently be made from non-food grade British-grown wheat. Phil New led the Government's independent review into the future of SAF and urged it to consider British bioethanol as a credible and scalable option. Mr New said: 'Ethanol made from British-grown milling wheat, which would otherwise be exported as animal feed, can be processed into SAF in a way that meets the emissions reductions required by the UK's standards. 'Home-grown, low-carbon aviation fuel industry' 'This is a real opportunity to create a home-grown, low-carbon aviation fuel industry that supports British agriculture, strengthens fuel security and helps us meet our climate ambitions.' Ben Hackett, managing director at Vivergo Fuels, added: 'The UK has the capability today to produce sustainable aviation fuel from home-grown non-food grade wheat – supporting British farmers, reducing carbon emissions, and improving our energy security. But outdated regulations are blocking this from happening. 'It makes no sense that ethanol from British wheat can be blended into petrol for cars, but not used to make jet fuel, especially when other countries are already moving ahead with this technology.' The analysis by Public First also found the UK could require the output of seven large-scale bioethanol plants by 2035 to meet growing domestic demand for SAF.
Telegraph
13 minutes ago
- Telegraph
Record number of migrants claim asylum after arriving as skilled workers
A record number of migrants are claiming asylum despite arriving in the UK with legal visas, Telegraph analysis of Home Office data shows. Some 4,394 legal migrants who came to the UK in 2022 with visas to work or study had claimed asylum within three years of arriving. That was almost triple the number two years previously when just 1,518 migrants with visas had claimed asylum within three years of arriving, according to the Home Office figures. Yvette Cooper, the Home Secretary, is preparing to unveil new restrictions to prevent migrants using study and work visas as a backdoor into Britain's asylum system. Being granted asylum enables migrants to stay in the UK permanently whereas work and study visas are only temporary. Rejected asylum seekers can prolong their stay – sometimes indefinitely – by making repeated appeals to frustrate their deportation. According to the Home Office data, there were some 18,442 migrants living in the UK in 2024 who had switched from work, study or other visas and were either seeking asylum or had been granted refugee status. This was double the number a decade ago and up from a mere 151 in 2006. Of the 18,442, one in five were Pakistani, with 3,982 of them having gone down the asylum route despite arriving with a legal visa at some point. The vast majority – 3,603 – had arrived as students. This was followed by Afghans (2,097), Iranians (1,685), Libyans (1,367) and Bangladeshis (1,463). One of the cases involved a Pakistani man who first arrived on a student visa but was granted refugee status by an immigration tribunal and allowed to stay in the UK despite being convicted of sexually assaulting a woman in 2017. The man, now aged 53 and given anonymity by the judge, arrived in the UK in 2006 as a student. He was initially granted leave to remain only until the end of that year, but he overstayed his visa and lived in the UK illegally for 11 years. Another Pakistani, Nadra Almas, first arrived in the UK in 2004 on a student visa, valid for five months. She was served with a removal notice in 2008 but won a 16-year legal battle to secure refugee status by claiming she was a Christian who would face persecution if deported back to Pakistan. Under Labour's plans to crack down on such abuses of the system, work and study visas will be rejected for individuals who fit the profile of someone who is judged likely to claim asylum and comes from a country with high rates of people switching to claim asylum. There will also be restrictions on asylum claims from individuals switching from work and study visas where conditions in their home country have not materially changed since their arrival. Ms Cooper is also planning to introduce measures to bar migrants who came to the UK on a work or study visa from claiming taxpayer-funded accommodation. Asylum seekers can claim accommodation and other financial support if they are destitute or likely to become destitute. However, work and study visa holders must prove they have sufficient funds to sustain themselves while in the UK. Officials will use the bank statements submitted by visa holders as part of their initial application when deciding whether to grant them asylum accommodation. This will make it significantly harder for asylum seekers to claim free accommodation if they came to the UK on a visa. A Home Office source said: 'We need to impose further restrictions to cut the number of people applying for asylum to extend their stay because their visa has run out.'
