The Government's 'yew turn' (From The Northern Echo)

The Government's 'yew turn'

8:12pm Thursday 17th February 2011 in Peter Barron By Peter Barron

"Sorry" is not a word used very often by politicians so Caroline Spelman deserves some credit for her apology over the Government's plans to privatise our forests.

She has been forced into an embarrassing climbdown by the weight of public opinion.

So should she - and the Government - be praised for listening and changing tack, or condemned for rushing headlong into a plan which hadn't been thought through?

The answer is "both". We want a government which listens, responds and says sorry went it gets something badly wrong. But we also want a government which considers its actions carefully instead of behaving like a bull in a china shop - or an elephant rampaging through a forest.

The strength of feeling amongst our own readers on this issue has been made clear in the way they have responded to the "Save Our Forests" campaign.

The notion of selling off our woodland, despite increasingly desperate promises about public access, was a step too far.

And the Government should have realised it before embarking on such a foolhardy path.