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

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, with reference to the Government response to the Independent review of protected site management on Dartmoor, what his planned timescale is for (a) agreeing, (b) implementing and (c) completing a Molinia reduction strategy across the more; what level of Molinia reduction he plans to secure; and who the senior responsible officer for the Molinia reduction strategy will be.

We fully support the recommendations of the independent review, which includes the recommendation to tackle the over domination of Molinia in some places on Dartmoor. Defra is supporting the establishment of the Land Use Management Group (LUMG) in the coming weeks. The LUMG will oversee the broader plan for restoring Dartmoor’s SSSIs, including the management of Molinia to benefit biodiversity, carbon and farming interests. The reduction of Molinia will require a strategic approach across large areas of Dartmoor and it will take time.