Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment she has made of the adequacy of the Tree Planting Taskforce's progress; and what involvement that Taskforce has had in the development of the Tree Action Plan.

The UK-wide Tree Planting Taskforce brings together the relevant ministers from across the four UK nations. It has made good progress, enabling cross-UK collaboration and furthered understanding of shared challenges and opportunities.

Given the UK-wide nature of the Taskforce, it is not directly involved in the development of the Trees Action Plan for England, although Defra is engaging with relevant delivery partners and arm’s-length bodies on the Action Plan. We will continue to engage with the Taskforce to identify opportunities for cross-UK working.