London: The largest ever gathering of people dressed as slugs slid into Westminster today, calling on the government to deliver on its promise to restore the nation’s ‘ghost woods’ (ancient woodlands buried beneath timber plantations) before they disappear for good.  

Starting in Parliament Square, the procession slowly inched its way to Defra’s offices to deliver a petition of over 145,000 signatures. Backed by Dame Judi Dench, the petition urges Defra and Forestry England (the body responsible for managing and promoting publicly owned forests in England) to move faster on their commitment to restore these smothered ancient woodlands by 2030. People from every single constituency in the UK have signed the petition.

MP Andrew George attended the event, alongside more than 50 costumed nature lovers, who were led by a lemon slug; a rare, bright yellow species native to England’s ancient woodlands. Waving placards reading “the slime is up” and “No more sluggish progress”, the unhurried march took place at a critical moment for the nation’s forests, as the government prepares a new Trees Action Plan aimed at improving the resilience and condition of the country’s woodland.

Speaking at the event Wild Card Campaigner Rosie Smart-Knight said: “Today’s slugrising puts the spotlight on our vanishing ghost woods. Only 1.6% of England remains ancient woodland*, after vast areas were replaced with single-species plantations. The government has promised to restore these sites to rich, thriving forests, but progress has been painfully slow.

“Planting new trees is important, but we can’t afford to sidestep what’s already here. Ancient woodlands are irreplaceable and support more biodiversity than any other land habitat in the UK. If we don’t act now, we risk letting these ecosystems slip away and no amount of new planting will bring them back.”

Wild Card teamed up with Oscar-winning actress and nature-lover Dame Judi Dench and people-powered campaign group 38 Degrees to launch the petition after analysis revealed that Forestry England are woefully behind on fulfilling their targets. 

Matthew McGregor, CEO  at 38 Degrees, said: “We fight every day for a fairer, greener Britain. Almost 150,000 of us from every single constituency across the country urgently want our nation’s ancient woodlands restored. 

“Forestry England and Defra would be wise to listen to the public and save these ‘ghost woods’ before it’s too late.”

The UK is one of the most nature-depleted countries in the world, with the nation’s forests in a particularly dire state. A Woodland Trust report found that woodland biodiversity is continuing to decline and that only 9% of England’s forests are in a favourable condition. With ancient woodland capable of supporting more biodiversity than any other land-based habitat in the UK, their restoration has never been so crucial.

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FOOTNOTES* native ancient woodland covers 1.6% of England. Hectares of native ancient woodland are included in Table 3-1 in the Woodland Trust’s Current State of Ancient Woodland Restoration report and then calculated as a percentage of the land in England.

NOTES TO EDITORS

CONTACT INFORMATION

Heather Carswell: press@wildcard.land

Kate Wilsea: press@38degrees.org.uk

ABOUT WILD CARD

Wild Card is a citizens’ movement campaigning for the UK’s biggest landowners to urgently rewild their lands in response to the climate and nature emergency. With over 400,000 people supporting their campaigns to date they have already claimed successes in persuading the royal estates and other landowners to begin ambitious nature restoration schemes. Discover more about the campaign to rewild the Ghost Woods here. 

ABOUT 38 DEGREES

We are a community of nearly one million people representing every corner of the country and all walks of life. We aren’t a group of career activists; most of our supporters don’t belong to multiple campaign groups. Instead, they choose to engage in small and meaningful ways, through us, on the issues that matter most to them.