IT was a change in tone so striking that it felt at odds with the holiday season. On Thursday, Richard Stanford strode onto a podium and said something many in the industry had long been thinking (and some had even been saying). 

It was time, the Forestry Commission's chief executive declared, to end the "dogma around conifers". If forestry were to thrive, he went on, it would need a mix of both broadleaved and coniferous species. Planting the latter would, he added, support biodiversity and wildlife across the land, contrary to the popular opinion of the naysayers. Put simply, the days of "conifer bad, broadleaf good" were over.

READ MORE: Forestry Commission chief calls for end to 'dogma around conifers'

This was music to the ears of many in the industry – an industry that too often has to justify its existence. Not quite bullish, but Richard's words were firm enough to have forestry figures finally believing the UK Government (with reference to England only because of devolution) was finally taking things seriously. 

It's a good thing, too, as England has previously been described as a "lost cause", given its struggles to hit its tree-planting targets – admittedly it is not alone in that – and the lack of genuine trust in those running things at Defra.

But not only did Thursday's Confor event give Richard the chance to set the tone, it also presented one of the first opportunities for the new forestry minister to speak to a captive audience. Trudy Harrison spoke of wanting to "take a chainsaw" to the time it takes to plant trees in England; which would certainly be as good a place to start as any. 

If 2023 were to bring us anything, we'll keep our fingers crossed it's that. 

This piece is an extract from today’s Forestry Latest News newsletter, which is emailed out at 4PM every Friday with a round-up of the week's top stories. 

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