Celebrities join campaign to save English forests

Celebrities including Annie Lennox and Judi Dench have signed a petition to urge the British government not to sell off the country's publicly owned forests.

They have joined scores of others supporting the Save England's Forests campaign, which says a bill being debated in Parliament will allow the government to put public woodlands in England on sale.

Other famous supporters include actress Gillian Anderson, actor Richard E. Grant, model Lily Cole and fashion designer Vivienne Westwood.

In a letter published Sunday, the campaign urged the government to secure public access to forests for future generations.

The government announced last year it was consulting on "new ownership options" for the public forest estate.

About 18 percent of forests and woodland in England are state-owned.