Tree Felling
(asked on 23rd October 2014) - View Source
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 10 September 2014 to Question 208409, what the maximum level of fine and sanction available for illegal tree felling was in each year since 1982; and when the level of fine or sanction was last reviewed and last increased under provisions in the Criminal Justice Act 1982.
The penalty for felling a tree without the authority of a felling licence is prescribed by section 17 of the Forestry Act 1967. A person guilty of this offence is liable on summary conviction to a fine not exceeding level 4 on the standard scale or twice the sum which appears to the court to be the value of the tree, whichever is the higher. The standard scale of fines was introduced into the Forestry Act by the Criminal Justice Act 1982.
Changes to the standard scale are made the Ministry of Justice and apply uniformly across all offences using the standard scale. The level 4 fine maximum at present is £2,500.
Since 1982, the standard scale has been revised as follows:
Level: | 1982: | 1992 (as amended by the Criminal Justice Act 1991): |
1 | £25 | £200 |
2 | £50 | £500 |
3 | £200 | £1,000 |
4 | £500 | £2,500 |
5 | £1,000 | £5,000 |