Toby Carvery boss apologises for cutting down 500-year-old Enfield oak tree

The boss ofhas apologised after the company cut down an ancient oak tree thought to be 500 years old. The tree, which has a girth of 6.1 metres, stood near the car park of the Whitewebbs House Toby Carvery in north London.

It had been assessed as dying and a risk to the public by tree experts employed by the company’s owner Mitchells & Butlers, and was cut down on April 3. from locals and campaigners. Now Phil Urban, from Mitchells & Butlers, has responded: "Clearly the felling of a beautiful old tree is a very emotive subject and is not something any of us would undertake lightly. I can only apologise for all the upset that it has caused."

Enfield Council reported the matter to the Metropolitan Police earlier and said they were treating it as criminal damage. It has also put an emergency preservation order in place on the base of the stump. Environmental campaigners and locals attacked the tree's destruction as “devastating” and compared it to the felling of the Sycamore Gap tree in 2023.

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Mitchells & Butlers defended the decision, saying it acted on the advice of employed tree experts. But the Woodland Trust has argued that the old tree was still an important habitat, with ancient oaks supporting biodiversity like endangered dead wood beetles.

Ed Pyne, Woodland Trust senior conservation adviser for trees, said: “This is the most shocking fell I think I’ve ever seen in more than a decade working with ancient trees.

“In my view, and the view of many others, this is ecologically much more significant than the Sycamore Gap – and certainly a more irreplaceable tree. Ancient oaks are particularly rich in biodiversity with habitats that take centuries to develop. They simply can’t be replaced by younger trees and can’t be replaced quickly.”

Ergin Erbil, leader of Enfield Council, said the tree felling occurred on April 3.. He added: "Enfield Council cares deeply about protecting trees and green spaces in the borough.

“The council was not informed of this incident until last week. Our teams immediately carried out a full site inspection to assess the damage after receiving reports of the damage done to the tree.

“We are treating the matter as criminal damage and have reported it to the police. We’ve now placed a legal protection (Tree Preservation Order) on the tree and are looking at ways to help it grow back.”

The council will continue to take “appropriate legal action” and will report any criminal activity found during its investigation to the police, Mr Erbil said.

It also believes the firm has broken the terms of its lease to maintain and protect the existing landscape, Mr Erbil added. “The tree was the oldest one on site and cutting it down seems to be a clear breach of this condition,” he said.

It comes as the Tree Council and Forest Research published a report on Monday, which called for a "robust and effective system" of protections as part of a wider action plan to protect England's most important trees in the wake of the Sycamore Gap tree felling.