Speeches by Gardiner.

“Maybe I should ask that of Professor Howard Boyd and Mr Garrigan.”

“My hon. Friend is talking about peatlands; she will know that Indonesia had a huge, deep burn of its peatlands in 2019, with 31,000 sq km of land burned. In the UK, when we had a terrible peatland fire on Saddleworth moor in 2018, just the year before, an estimated 4.5 million people suffered from the particulate matte…”

“I just wanted to pick up on some of the things you were saying there and do that transition. What about the evidence in the database? The New Forest has done some data collection, and they said that the banning of barbecues, which they have already implemented in the New Forest, was a success, and that the evidence sug…”

“Mr Garrigan, if we were to frame that in terms of a recommendation from this Committee, what would it look like?”

“This is an essential point. My hon. Friend will remember the words of Pak Ja Martin, who was in charge of the project that we went to see. He said, “You can’t talk conservation to people who are hungry.” Therefore, local indigenous people, who for centuries have protected and conserved their environment, must be involv…”

“My hon. Friend has been very generous in taking interventions. On the animals that had diseases—she is right, it was an affecting sight that depressed us all; it is great that the islands are being built—is she aware that at a recent lecture, Nadine, who we met in Oxford, confirmed that when orangutans are captured for…”

“Mr Garrigan, if we were to frame that in terms of a recommendation from this Committee, what would it look like?”

“Public space protection orders at that point?”

“My hon. Friend speaks knowledgeably about the threats to biodiversity in Sumatra in particular. It is not just the sixth largest island in the world; it also has 1,300 different tree species. Sumatra’s forest cover has been staggeringly depleted, with about 20% of its lowland forest remaining. My hon. Friend is right t…”

“My hon. Friend has been very generous in taking interventions. On the animals that had diseases—she is right, it was an affecting sight that depressed us all; it is great that the islands are being built—is she aware that at a recent lecture, Nadine, who we met in Oxford, confirmed that when orangutans are captured for…”

“My hon. Friend makes an excellent point. Does she agree that, as part of that consultation, many of us would like the Government to consider that this should not just be a matter of legality, but of actual deforestation? She will know of cases where other countries have passed similar legislation; in Brazil, its then P…”

“Maybe I should ask that of Professor Howard Boyd and Mr Garrigan.”

“My hon. Friend makes an excellent point. Does she agree that, as part of that consultation, many of us would like the Government to consider that this should not just be a matter of legality, but of actual deforestation? She will know of cases where other countries have passed similar legislation; in Brazil, its then P…”

“I just wanted to pick up on some of the things you were saying there and do that transition. What about the evidence in the database? The New Forest has done some data collection, and they said that the banning of barbecues, which they have already implemented in the New Forest, was a success, and that the evidence sug…”

“If the hon. Member wants to know the specifics of how to do that, they get a jar of liquid honey and squeeze it up the tree. You then have to follow it up with your tongue. I do not recommend that for anywhere near the Whips Office.”

“I have two brief points. Professor Howard Boyd, you spoke about the daily hazard assessment. The fire severity index puts that into the Natural Hazards Partnership, but it is not made publicly available. Would it be helpful if it were one of the recommendations of this Committee that that information should be made pub…”

“Should this Committee consider recommending that that becomes a legal obligation on land managers?”

“Mr Bailey, when we were looking at this aspect of wildfires in the Environmental Audit Committee, we heard that there had been a wildfire that came up against a properly rewetted peat bog in Wales, and it had then been extinguished adequately. I wanted to ask you, because you probably accept that it seems incongruous t…”

“Great. That depends, presumably, on making sure that people are aware. I know that electronic road signage has been used that can say you are now entering an area of heightened risk, and these controls are in place. Is that something that this Committee should be talking about recommending?”

“Thank you very much. That is really helpful.”