I’m pleased to say that conservation efforts that were led by Natural Resources Wales and supported by Red Squirrels Trust Wales have seen great success in recent years. Through careful forest management and by the releasing of captive-bred red squirrels into the area to bolster the indigenous population, we’ve seen a slow and steady recovery in the numbers of reds in the area. This work has been helped along by the Clocaenog Red Squirrels Trust, of which I must declare my membership. It has forged a strong relationship and partnership with NRW and the Red Squirrels Trust Wales in order to turn the tide on the fortunes of these wonderful animals.

It is these strong partnerships between conservation groups, Government agencies and volunteers that have set such a strong blueprint for future conservation efforts. I want to thank the many volunteers that I’ve met whilst visiting the Clocaenog forest, including Chris Bamber, the chair of the Clocaenog Red Squirrels Trust, Dave Wilson and Vic Paine. Their conservation efforts have made a huge difference. And, of course, conservation is not confined to Anglesey and it’s not confined to Denbighshire. They’re also under way in the Tywi forest in mid Wales. Around 300 red squirrels now call the forest their home, thanks to the efforts of the Red Squirrels United project—a three-year conservation programme funded by the heritage lottery fund. So much work has been done to conserve our red squirrel population, but, of course, we’re very far from finished. The future of red squirrel conservation has the potential to be bright and bold—indeed, bushy-tailed and bright-eyed as well.

In north Wales, the Magical Mammals project is just about to begin. This is a five-year project, which is being developed to bring together NRW, Clocaenog Red Squirrels Trust and Red Squirrels Trust Wales to form a leading conservation effort in and around my own constituency. But these conservation efforts are not just confined to forests; the work is going on in other places too. As the red squirrel champion and a proud patron and life member of the Welsh Mountain Zoo, I’m incredibly proud of the red squirrel breeding programme that is based in Colwyn Bay. In 1989, the zoo embarked upon its longest running conservation project, which, to this day, is dedicated to the conservation of red squirrels across the British isles. And by working on a UK-wide basis, that breeding programme has led vital research into wildlife reintroduction and the impact of squirrelpox. Our national zoo took a leading and early role in the reintroduction of an iconic part of Welsh wildlife on Anglesey and in Clocaenog, and I want to take this time to pay tribute to the zoo for all of the conservation work that it has done with red squirrels, and, indeed, other species, because there is no doubt that, without our national zoo, our wildlife would be less diverse and less rich than it actually is.

As well as the breeding programmes that take place in captivity, other methods of conservation have also been successful. From 2015 to 2017, the Vincent Wildlife Trust released over 50 pine martens near Devil’s Bridge in Ceredigion. As a natural predator of the grey squirrel, the introduction of the pine martens has helped to keep the population of greys back and in check. It’s this type of holistic conservation effort that we need to embrace if the red squirrel population across Wales and the rest of the UK is to recover further. In addition to the threat from grey squirrels, tree felling also poses a significant long-term threat to our furry friends. As things stand, red squirrels are thankfully afforded a number of legal protections. It’s illegal in law to deliberately kill or cause injury to a red squirrel, it’s illegal to interfere or obstruct squirrel nests that are actively being used, and, of course, it’s illegal to disturb a squirrel while it’s in its nest. And while these protections are very welcome, they’re not enough, because while the law does protect individual trees inhabited by squirrels from being felled, it does not protect the surrounding habitat, which, of course, is just as important for the long-term survival of the species. Forest habitat managements, at their very core, need to be at the heart of this conservation effort, and as much as NRW may want to protect our wildlife, I’m afraid that, at the moment, they simply do not have sufficient powers to be able to do so.

As things stand, the only reason that NRW can reject a felling licence is for poor forest management practice. The law does not allow NRW to refuse a licence, even if that licence will knowingly cause significant harm to the natural habitat of red squirrels. And I know, Minister, that this is something that we have corresponded on in the past in relation to these current arrangements. I do regard them as wrong, and I don't think that they reflect the value that people across Wales put on our wildlife, and, in particular, on the red squirrel. So, I would urge you, and your Welsh Government colleagues, to introduce a different model of licensing, which would allow NRW to be able to refuse felling licenses that have an unacceptable adverse impact on wildlife habitat. This is the case already in Scotland, and I think that that's a model that we ought to adopt. 

Dirprwy Lywydd, the plight of the red squirrel, and other species in similar situations, has flown under the radar for too long. Without the appropriate action to protect our wildlife here in Wales, we risk causing irreparable damage to our natural heritage. Here in Wales, we've been blessed to inherit some wonderful countryside and some marvellous wildlife, and we owe it to future generations to pass that abundant thing that we've inherited on in better shape than we found it. In the words of a wonderful Prime Minister, Margaret Thatcher,

'No generation has a freehold on this earth. All we have is a life tenancy—with a full repairing lease.'

And I want to encourage all Members of the Senedd, and our Welsh Government, to live up to that life tenancy. It's our duty to safeguard our environment and to support the plight of the red squirrel and other iconic Welsh wildlife. Thank you.