2. What action is the Welsh Government taking to ensure an adequate supply of Welsh timber for the manufacturing industry in Wales? OAQ(5)0106(ERA)

Welsh Government is maximising opportunities to increase woodland planting and management. This should ensure there is an adequate supply of timber for the manufacturing sector. Our natural resources policy will be key in planning and prioritising use of land in the future.

Cabinet Secretary, you’ll be aware that the latest Woodland for Wales indicators report revealed that, in the year to March 2016, just 348 acres of new woodland was created, which is significantly down from over 16,000 acres that were planted on average in each of the five years to 2014. That step change in planting seemed to coincide with the creation of Natural Resources Wales, and many in the timber manufacturing industry have expressed concerns about continuity of supply, and that will influence some of their business decisions about where investment goes. What do you say to companies like Clifford Jones Timber in Ruthin, in my own constituency, that have raised concerns about this? You’ve indicated that there is going to be an increase. Are we going to get up to this 16,000 acres plus that we were previously achieving historically, so that we can have these adequate supplies not just for the next five or six years, but for 10 and 20 years hence?

Yes, I too have visited Clifford Jones Timber in Ruthin, and they raised those very same concerns with me. NRW is the largest provider of timber in Wales, and that does supply, I think, 60 per cent of the total sector requirements. We have to increase the amount that we have been doing. We’ve now got the timber marketing plan, which does outline timber availability. That is only for five years, but I think it’s a good starting point. I’ve also asked officials to make sure we continue to work with farmers, for instance, because we want farmers to diversify, and this is an area that they can do that.

Cabinet Secretary, you remember the visit to Pentre Solar in Glanrhyd in Pembrokeshire, where you and I both saw how local Welsh timber had been used not only for house construction, but also for skills and increasing skills in the local workforce to work that timber. What further steps can you take, because I think there’s a great potential for timber for house construction in particular in Wales, and also, of course, the growth of woodland helps with flood prevention in areas, carbon sequestration and, also, air quality. So, isn’t it now time for a further push from the Welsh Government on a more bespoke support scheme for woodlands in Wales, because of the benefits not only to manufacturing, but to the quality of life that woodland can bring?

Yes, absolutely, and it was a very good example of how timber could be used in house construction at Pentre Solar, which we both visited. I’ve been having those discussions with my colleague, Carl Sargeant, the Cabinet Secretary for Communities and Children, in relation to looking at different ways of building houses. I mentioned in my previous answer to Darren Millar that we’ve got the new timber marketing plan. I think we need to have a look. We’ve just set up a woodlands strategy advisory panel task and finish group. That’s going to be to look at timber availability, and one area they could concentrate on is in relation to housing.

Cabinet Secretary, timber obviously is a major element here, and we’ve seen in my area the harvesting of timber change because of the diseases within the valley area. Therefore, the replanting is important, to look at, as Simon Thomas says, not just the nature of the land, but also perhaps the opportunity for other businesses beyond manufacturing, such as tourism areas. What progress has been made in replanting in the Afan valley to ensure that we can get that back to where it was?

I can’t give you specifics for the Afan valley, but I’d be very happy to write to you.