Save the 250 year old Cubbington pear tree from HS2.
The Parliament petitions site records 21,992 signatures for this petition, which closed on 26 February 2021. The Government responded on 7 October 2020.
The petition
The petition's creator is not named in the Petitions site's published record. Quoted in full from the UK Parliament petitions site.
Save the 250 year old Cubbington pear tree from HS2.
The 250 year old Cubbington Pear tree in Warwickshire, is the 2nd largest in the country and is due to be cut down in September 2020 to make way for HS2. In 2015 it was voted England’s ‘tree of the year’. Reroute the railway, or at least see if the tree can be safely moved out of the route’s way.
This is part of our heritage and is a tree of national importance. The story has made it to national media and there is public support to save the Cubbington pear tree.
The Government's response
The Government published its response on 7 October 2020; the petitions site lists the Department for Transport as responsible. Its summary:
Environmental considerations were central to the original route selection process for HS2, and wherever practicable, HS2 is being designed to avoid or reduce impacts to habitats and protected species.
The opening 315 words of the 770-word response:
The Government recognises that it is not possible to build a project on the scale of HS2 without having an impact on the environment, and that the construction of HS2 will result in the loss of trees and areas of natural habitat which are valued by local communities. This includes the Cubbington Pear Tree
The environmental impacts and associated mitigations for the HS2 Phase One route were considered, in great detail and depth, and then confirmed, by both Houses of Parliament, through the High Speed Rail (London-West Midlands) Act 2017. The route of the railway through this area of Warwickshire was chosen to minimise impacts to the South Cubbington ancient woodland while also trying to maintain a distance from the communities living in nearby villages. Therefore, any alteration of the alignment at this location to avoid the tree would result in significant effects to other environmental features and communities in this area.
HS2 Ltd explored all possible options to avoid removing the tree, but due to its age and condition removal cannot be avoided. A professional evaluation of all options was carried out by environmental experts to evaluate the structural integrity and vitality of the Cubbington Pear Tree and how this pertains to the tree’s status as an ancient or veteran tree.
After careful consideration, it was felt that that salvage combined with growing a number of new trees from cuttings taken from the Cubbington Pear Tree will provide the most efficient option to allow the long-term retention of the remnant tree and its progeny. HS2 Ltd has confirmed to the Woodland Trust that the Cubbington Pear Tree will be felled as part of the works required to build the new railway and the programme for felling along with moving the root plate and some timber as a deadwood feature to a nearby advance landscape and habitat mitigation site will be finalised in due course.
Read the full response on the petitions site.
Source and receipt
- https://petition.parliament.uk/archived/petitions.json?state=with_response&page=19UK Parliament Petitions API · read 2026-10-15 · SHA-256
79aa80b6d3919dbc… - The petition on petition.parliament.uk
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