As we enter the election campaign the tone set by our politicians will influence industry confidence into the future. Some politicians are suggesting that forestry is not a fully productive activity and should therefore be regulated out of certain classes of land. Industry confidence will diminish if political debate continues to operate on an emotional level with little reference to the facts. Emotional debate tends to lead politicians to regulatory control rather than use of existing commercial forces. Could our politicians be more encouraging by contrasting the returns of different land uses? They could then expect relative land prices to be the means by which the “right activity takes place on the right landâ€.